By Fatima Saka
What began as a routine morning commute quickly turned into a moment of terror for five passengers in Abuja on Tuesday, when their safety was endangered by the actions of a Road Safety officer on a busy federal road.
At about 9:34 a.m., on the Presidential Bridge behind Head of Service at the Federal Secretariat, a Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) officer identified as Mr E. Akor reportedly jumped into a car at the traffic light, landing on a passenger seated in the front seat and triggering panic inside the car.
Eyewitnesses said the officer, without offering any explanation, began forcefully dragging the vehicle’s ignition alongside the driver in an attempt to stop the car. Inside the vehicle were five occupants, including the driver, who were said to be screaming and pleading as the struggle continued.
“Stop the car, driver, road safety stop,” passengers were heard shouting, fearing that the vehicle could lose control and crash. The tension escalated as the officer refused to disengage, even after a superior officer intervened at the scene.
Witnesses described the moment as harrowing, noting that the officer’s actions exposed the passengers, ordinary Nigerians on their way to their daily activities, to grave danger. The incident occurred in a high-traffic area, raising concerns that other road users could also have been affected if the vehicle had crashed.
The situation reportedly ended without loss of life only after the vehicle eventually came to a stop, an outcome passengers described as nothing short of providential.
The incident has reignited public concern over unsafe enforcement practices on Nigerian roads, with critics arguing that aggressive tactics by some traffic officers contradict the core mission of protecting lives.
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Road safety experts and civil society voices have called for an immediate investigation into the incident, urging the Federal Road Safety Corps to strengthen training, supervision, and accountability to ensure that enforcement prioritises human life above all else.
As road accidents remain a leading cause of injury and death in Nigeria, the frightening experience of these passengers underscores a painful irony: those meant to protect lives on the road must never become a source of danger themselves.
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