The Federal Road Safety Corps has clarified that it is not against the use of Google map by motorists while driving, but advised motorists to always set the map before embarking on their journeys in order to avoid distractions.
Spokesman of the FRSC, Commander Bisi Kazeem stated in a recent pronouncement that the FRSC has records to show that the use of mobile phone (be it text, voice calls, chats, browsing, setting Google map to find location etc) has caused Road Traffic Crashes in the past.
He observed that the Sector Commander, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Corps Commander Wobin Ayuba Gora, who has severally been quoted as saying use of Google map while driving is an offence, must have been misquoted.
READ THE FULL TEXT OF FRSC HEADQUARTERS REACTION BELOW:
The attention of the Federal Road Safety Corps has been drawn to an online publication where the Sector Commander, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Corps Commander Wobin Ayuba Gora was quoted out of context on the use of google map app while driving, during the 2019 ‘Ember Months’ flag off held in Lugbe, FCT on Wednesday.
According to the writer, the FCT Sector Commander while delivering his ember months address stated that driving with the aid of Google map using mobile phone is a serious traffic offence.
The Corps wishes to state that the Sector Commander must have been misquoted and his statement outrightly misrepresented because the Federal Road Safety Corps as a technology driven organisation is not and has never stood against the use of google map by motorists.
To state the obvious, we have always enlightened the public on the position of the law on use of phone while driving which the Sector Commander tried to emphasize during the flag off.
The statement he made during the flag off buttresses the position of the Corps, which is that any driver who intends to deploy the use of Google map while driving must have it set on the phone before embarking on the journey, not while the vehicle is already in motion as this could be dangerous to the driver and other road users, and can lead to road traffic crash.
We say this because, available records have shown that use of phone for whatever purpose; be it text, voice calls, chats, browsing, setting google map to find location etc while driving could be distractive and can easily lead to loss of concentration. This has led to many road traffic crashes with attendant loss of lives and properties.
On the strength of this, the Federal Road Safety Corps wishes to reiterate its position on use of phone while driving as a dangerous and hazardous road traffic behaviour which has led to unwanted and avoidable road crashes.
We therefore call on all motorists who intend to deploy the use of google map on their phone especially during the festive season when traffic density is high, to activate such before setting the vehicle in motion so as to ensure 100 percent concentration on the wheels.
Road Safety is State of Mind, Road Traffic Crash is Absence of Mind. Stay Alert, Stay Alive! FRSC Cares for Your Safety.
Signed:
Bisi Kazeem FSI
Corps Commander
Public Education Officer
FRSC
