We don't stop for them [Safety Officers]

Hello People! Hope you had an enjoyable Saturday? You attended a party? In my country weekends are known for parties especially Fridays and Saturdays. Yoruba people should step out please 🤗. I was at work as usual and I felt the hit of weekend vibes by people that entered our place.

Today, a man came asking for my manager to see if he could help him with a little assistant because some set of officers on the road seized his motorcycle. He narrated his odea and it made me remember when I had an encounter with these same officers on the road.

Image source: freepik.com

These officers are know as the ROAD SAFETY CORPS, they stay on the road to check and stop all irregularities as regards to standard of the road system. They make sure all principles are well followed as it concerns the users especially the motorist. They also help to curb theft of vehicles or motorcycles because they demand Particulars of the vehicle or motorcycle and as well as to check the legibility of the driver or the cyclist (they demand for drivers license).

All these are good and well recommendable because it helps to make the country a better place but in other hand, they're wickedeness on their own.

Letme tell you what I meant...

On a norm, they're supposed to stop you if they notice that you are defaulting or violating their rule in one way or the other, and when they see an error in your driving, motorcycle or vehicle, just a little fine would do or a correction but that has not been the way they've been operating.

When I had an encounter with them I was very young, I was traveling with a motorcycle to another nearby community which i plied a major highway. I was speeding high when I met them at checkpoint, one of them stood on the way to stop me and I stopped, before I knew it they collected the key to my motorcycle, saying I should follow them to their office. "What did I do?" And one of them started filling faults upon faults. They asked for driving particulars of the machine and I told them the papers are at home and besides I'm not supposed to carry it along as I just took this bike from my dad to submit documents to my boss. They didn't listened to me at all and within a short time, they had drafted out list of payment in their invoice that I'm to pay at different banks.

Image source

I struggled and struggled to pull out but it was to no avail, I even told them that I'm an high school student but they gave me a deaf ear. For God's sake where do they think I'd get that kind of money to pay?

One of them later came and tried to be friendly, telling me to give them "small thing" so I'd be freed on the spot because if they eventually take to their office, I'll pay all they listed in the invoice. I was not having a single note of naira with me that moment so I refused to give them the "small thing".

I was left with no option than to follow them to the office, they asked me to come and drive the bike and I refused ( I refused because I'm the only one that knows how to switch on the bike .....aside the normal start button, also they won't allow me to drive alone). So they carried the bike inside their van and all of us drove to their office. You see, they close for that day because they've succeeded in catching a client🤣.

[The bike was my dad's and i dare not to call him because I sneaked out the Ikea]

Image source

We got to the office and I had to call the person I was going to meet. He responded and I told him everything. He laughed at the situation and he transferred some money into my account to go and pay. He didn't even bothered to drag with them.

I went to the different banks and paid the money (about $25) and my bike was released.

I still continued my journey and when I met my boss(the one that sent money to settle them), he opened my eyes on the officers operations. He said I made a mistake by stopping when they waved me to stop, that even if they're waving and they notice I'm on a high speed, they'll run off the road.

I learnt a new good lesson that day that I vowed never to notice them on the road while passing, I'll put on a terminator's eyes 🤖☠️ when I see them and will be ready to clear off anyone it they refuse to leave the way.

Yeah, that's the hidden rule for road users, never to stop for those set of officers unless you have money to pay, because even if you meet all the requirements, they'd still find find fault.

These officers are not dull too, they've mapped out a strategy for their stopping trick, which is staying with the police, so if you stop for the police, you stop for them too....And this is because you can't drive off from the police because they would pursue you if they're mean while the SAFETY CORPS are not allowed to pursue.

What am I saying in the essence? The regulations of the ROAD SAFETY CORPS is very to good to the country at large but their operation is a total turn off. All their target is to fill their pocket.

Don't stop for them!

Thanks for reading

12th February 2022