By Desire Emmanuel
An Abuja-based lawyer, Mr Babatunde Ogundipe, on Tuesday, November 11, wrote the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) expressing concern over the habit of some parents who put toddlers on their laps while driving on the highways.
The lawyer said he had observed this trend on many occasions, wondering if the road traffic agency is not aware of it.
He also expressed concern over what he described as the habit of parents allowing their children to be in front seats of the cars when they are being taken to schools and such children don’t even put on seatbelts.
This, he said, is against traffic codes that disallow children from sitting in front seats of vehicles.
According to him: “Every morning, my drive from home to work takes around 25, 35 minutes. Within that drive, I observe that almost every day, I see at least five cars on the expressway where children are either in the front seat or jumping about in the back—no sitting, let alone the use of seatbelts.
“Another practice that you might find unbelievable, but which I also see repeatedly, is parents having their kids on their laps while driving! Has a regime of driving lessons for kids been introduced, or is it also a demonstration of affection?
“In some of the cases cited, these kids are all over the driving parent, giving such parent a head rub or chin massage from the back. Maybe I should take it as a demonstration of how loving the family is? But why should this be on our roads, with all the interesting classes of road users?”
He said the dangers lurking around these habits are many and telling, adding that the immediate danger is the possibility of getting these kids killed or grievously injured if anything happens.
“The long-term effect is that kids involved in these practices tend to grow up seeing this as normal, becoming irresponsible road users themselves and breeding the next generation of similar road users,” he added.
He therefore urged the FRSC to look into this menace and take a more aggressive step to punish parents found to be engaging in such acts in line with the law.
“I also suggest that the FRSC should consider partnering with schools to educate these kids. Teach them to stop making such demands and to reject such offers from their parents and adults around them,” he stated.
