From: Aloysius Attah, Onitsha
One more person has been confirmed dead, bringing the number to three out of fourteen students of Federal Polytechnic, Oko, Anambra State, who were involved in auto crash, last weekend.
Public Relations Officer of the institution, Mr. Obini Onuchukwu, who confirmed this to newsmen, on Thursday, said other injured students were still receiving treatment at Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu teaching Hospital, Awka and Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi.
He said that the school was pained over the loss and was doing everything possible to ensure that the surviving ones gets impressive assistance.
Meanwhile, an industrialist, Chief Godwin Ezeemo, who went to sympathy visit to the victims in the hospital has called for a medical policy for students and unemployed youths, particularly during auto crashes to help them access free medical services.
Ezeemo donated N100, 000 to the victims to supplement their upkeep and urged other people to assist victims for quick recovery.
He condemned the indiscriminate issuance of driving licenses to untrained drivers by the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) and other authorities and attributed the incessant road crashes to this practice and also advocated that the use of drivers license as a means of identification should stop henceforth in Nigeria.
According to him because the license was being used for identification, people who ordinary would not have business with the license gets it and at any point may have access to vehicle and they jump in and start driving hence causing avoidable road crashes.
“Most drivers do not know road codes, signs and traffic laws before driving vehicles, so it is really difficult for the drivers to handle any traffic challenges. As they do not know traffic rules, at times cannot read and are not well tutored on driving skills, they over speed and run into difficulty. A lot of jobs need to be done by FRSC if they really want to reduce the number of crashes recorded on daily basis” he said.
Earlier, Mr Nwachukwu Okechukwu, President of the Student Union Government, Federal Polytechnic, Oko, said that the crash which occurred when a student shuttle bus had a head on collision with a Hilux jeep had taken a toll on the institution as all the 14 passengers were their students who travelled home for the weekend and were returning back to school.
One of the victims, Mr. Emmanuel Odo, commended the school authority as well as Ezeemo for their support so far, stressing that he was recovering from injuries, while thanking God for saving his life.