Omo, Naija no go ever stop to amaze me oh! See as wey people dey rush fuel wey spill from crashed tankers like say e be party jollof. Just on January 19, one big tanker wey carry 33,000 litres of diesel jam Liverpool Bridge for Mile 2, Lagos. E lose control, scatter everywhere, and before you sabi wetin dey happen, na so crowd don gather dey scoop fuel like say dem wan chop!
E fit don turn serious wahala if the tanker fall off the bridge, but thank God say emergency boys wey dey work for NEMA and Lagos Traffic Authority come salvage the situation before e turn say-wetin pass market. Dem come use crane carry the tanker back to normal and closed road so no be say wahala go dey double.
The police sef come join hand to control the big crowd wey no wan hear word. Olatunde Akinsanya, wey be Director for LASEMA, talk say na speeding cause the accident, but the fire boys from Lagos Fire Service talk say na brake failure. E mean say anything fit happen anytime. And Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu no gree keep quiet, him call the action of the people wey dey scoop fuel as reckless.
Na real surprise say despite plenty wey don happen before, people still dey put dem life for fire by rushing to scoop fuel from crashed tankers. Wetin all these past tragedies go teach dem? Omo, we don see say many don die for dis same matter, some as far back as 1998 when over 1,000 people die for Jesse wey pipeline burst. Wahala wey no go end!
Recent statistics show say between 2009 and October 2024, as e be, almost 1,613 people don die from 169 tanker accidents. E still dey shock me say people no dey learn. Wetin dem wan gain wey go make dem risk dem life just to grab small fuel? E no make sense! People dey hustle for any palava wey fit give dem money, even if it mean say dem go jump inside fire.
For road matter, Naija get plenty issues wey dey cause accidents every day. Those rickety trucks wey dey carry fuel no dey see road, dem no get proper brake or headlight. Drivers dey drink ogogoro and still dey drive like say dem no fit crash. Our leaders go dey collect bribe from normal car owners while dem go just dey look road to catch dem old trucks wey fit kill many people. Na wetin dey vex me pass.
And talk about environment, chai! Fuel wey spill dey cause big wahala for air wey we dey breathe. We gatz sanitize this whole fuel industry! E no go better if law enforcement agents no take action. Na dem suppose dey chase those rickety tankers rather than stop normal cars. The civil defense crowd go help clear the mess too as we no fit continue like dis. Emergency services must dey on alert anytime accident wan happen.
Make dem set laws wey go regulate tanker movement, say dem no fit run road during day. Tanker owners go fit pay for any carelessness wey lead to accident. E good say people like Dangote dey invest in new, safer vehicles. We need more of that! We gatz find way to make sure only quality tankers dey ply our roads.
Me I dey hail the idea of emergency hotlines wey people fit use call anytime tanker or pipeline burst. Dem gatz zone off any area immediately to prevent any serious situation. Awareness campaigns for communities wey no get access to social media fit save plenty lives. Na time to dey arrest those wey still dey scoop fuel after plenty warnings!
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