Federal Road Safety Commission (Establishment) Act Amendment Bill 2010

A BILL FOR AN ACT TO AMEND THE FEDERAL ROAD SAFETY COMMISSION (ESTABLISHMENT) ACT 2007 TO MAKE SPECIAL PROVISIONS FOR LICENCING PROCEDURE FOR PERSONS AUTHORISED TO DRIVE MOTOR VEHICLES AND FOR OTHER RELATED MATTERS 2010.

Sponsor: Hon. Christopher S. Eta.

BE IT ENACTED by the National Assembly of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as follows:-
1. The Federal Road Safety Commission (Establishment) Act 2007 hereinafter referred to as the Principal Act is amended as set out below:-
Section 10 of the Principal Act is amended by inserting immediately after subsection (1) the following new subsection (2) and re-arranging the subsequent subsections accordingly.
(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of any other enactment, the Corps shall to the exclusion of any other authority be the sole authority responsible for:
(a) issuing driver’s licence of all categories,
(b) developing the curriculum for drivers’ education,
(c) testing of applicants for driver’s licence,
(d) testing applicant’s visual and hearing acuity;
(e) capturing applicants digital photographic image;
(f) processing all matters necessary and incidental to granting an application for a driver’s licence.
2. The Principal Act is amended by inserting immediately after section 10 the following new section 11 and re-arranging the subsequent sections accordingly.
11. (1) An applicant for a driver’s licence shall be required to:-

(a) undertake a compulsory driver education in an accredited and approved driving school to provide the applicant with sufficient education to guarantee that he possesses the necessary attitudes, knowledge and abilities as may be specified the in the driving curriculum;

(b) pass the theoretical and practical test conducted by a duly authorised officer of the Corps to verify that the applicant has attained the level of competence specified in the driving curriculum;

(2) without prejudice to the power of the Commission to make regulations under this Act, the compulsory driver education, practical and theoretical tests specified in this section shall be in substantial compliance with the provisions of the third schedule to this Act.

(3) The Corps shall not issue a driver’s licence to an applicant unless the applicant further undertakes the following tests conducted by a duly authorised officer of the Corps:

(a) vision acuity test;
(b) hearing acuity test;
(c) general medical fitness test.
(4) The Corps shall duly certify any applicant that passes any of the tests conducted by a duly authorised officer of the Corps pursuant to this section.
(5) The minimum requirement for a driver’s licence shall be the first school leaving certificate or its equivalent.
(6) The Corp shall maintain a driving record of all drivers duly issued with a driver’s licence.
(7) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as empowering the Corps to establish driving schools.
3. Section 11 of the Principal Act is amended by inserting immediately after subsection (1) the following new subsection (2) and re-arranging the subsequent subsection accordingly.
(2)The Corps shall for the purposes of this Act engage the services of qualified medical practitioners and such other officers necessary to carry into effect the provisions of this Act.
4. Section 23 of the Principal Act is amended by inserting immediately after subsection (2) the following new subsection (3) and (4):-
(3) No officer of the Corps shall issue a driver’s licence to an applicant unless the applicant furnishes:
(a) evidence of training at an approved driving school;
(b) driving test certificate;
(c) hearing acuity test certificate;
(d) visual acuity test certificate;
(e) certificate of general medical fitness;
(f) first school leaving certificate or its equivalent.
(4) Any officer of the Corps who violates the provisions of subsection 3 of this section shall on conviction be liable to 3 years imprisonment.
5. Section 25 of the Principal Act is amended by inserting immediately after subsection (1) the following new subsection (2), (3) and (4) and re-arranging the subsequent subsections accordingly:-
(2) The Corp shall within 30 days of the occurrence of a road accident publish a report as to the circumstances that lead to the accident.
(3) Where a holder of a driver’s licence duly issued by the Corps is involved in an accident, the accident report shall contain a report as to the validity or otherwise of the said driver’s licence and the driving record of the said driver.
(4) Where an accident report indicates that a driver’s licence was not issued in compliance with the provisions of Section 11 of this Act, the officer who authorised the issuance of the licence shall be prosecuted in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
6. Section 28 of the Principal Act is amended by inserting immediately after subsection (2) a new subsection (3) as follows:-
(3) Where the driving record of a driver shows that he has been involved in certain number of minor or major accidents, and other traffic violations which in the opinion of the Corps Marshall constitutes potential danger to other road users, the driver’s licence may be revoked permanently or withdrawn for such length of period as may be determined by the Corps Marshall.
7. Section 30 of the Principal Act is amended by adding the following new definition:-
“first school leaving certificate or its equivalent”, for the purposes of this Act shall include the ability to understand and communicate in English language to the satisfaction of the Corps or any other certificate acceptable to the Corps”;
8. This Bill may be cited as the Road Safety Commission (Establishment) Act (Amendment) Bill 2010.

THIRD SCHEDULE
Part I Compulsory Driver Education:

1. (1) The applicant must have a thorough knowledge of the Highway Code and motoring laws as well as a thorough understanding of the responsibilities of a driver. This means that the student must have real concern for the safety of him-/herself, pedestrians and other road users. The applicant is also informed to make sure that the instructor fully covers the curriculum. Listed below are the eight items that the student needs to attend to and show that he or she is able to perform in order to pass the practical test.

(a) Car controls, equipment and components
The applicant must understand the function of the accelerator, clutch, gears, footbrake, handbrake and steering. The applicant must also be able to use these competently, understand the meaning of the gauges and other displays on the instrumental panel and know the function of other controls and switches in the car that have a bearing on road safety and use them competently. Further the applicant must be able to carry out routine safety checks concerning oil and coolant levels, tyre pressure, steering and brakes.

(b) Road user behaviour
i. The applicant must know the most common causes of accidents; know which road users are most at risk and how to reduce that risk. The applicant must also know the rules, risks and effects of drinking and driving and know the effect of fatigue, illness and drugs on driving performance.

ii. The applicant must also be aware of any age-related problems among other road users, especially among children, teenagers and the elderly. In addition he or she has to be alert and able to anticipate the likely actions of other road users and be able to take appropriate precautions and be aware that courtesy and consideration towards other road users are essential for safe driving.

(c) Vehicle characteristics
i. The applicant must know the important principles concerning braking distance and road holding under various road and weather conditions

ii. The applicant must also know the handling characteristics of other vehicles with regard to stability, speed, braking and manoeuvrability. In addition the applicant must be able to assess the risks caused by the characteristics of other vehicles and suggest precautions that can be taken and know that some vehicles are less easily seen than others.

(d)Road and weather conditions
i. The applicant must know the particular hazards in both daylight and the dark and on different types of roads. It’s important that the applicant gains driving experience on urban and higher speed roads (not on highways) in both daylight and the dark and know which road surfaces provide the better or poorer grip when braking.

ii. The applicant must also know the hazards caused by bad weather and be able to assess the risks caused by road and traffic conditions, be aware of how the conditions may cause others to drive unsafely, and be able to take appropriate precautions.

(e)Traffic signs, rules and regulations
The applicant must have sound knowledge of the meaning of traffic signs and road markings, for example speed limits, parking restrictions and zebra and pelican crossings.

(f) Car control and road procedure
The applicant must have the knowledge and skills to carry out the following tasks safely and competently practising the proper use of mirrors, observation and signals:

i. Take the necessary precautions before getting in or out of the vehicle.
ii. Before starting the engine, carry out safety checks on doors, seat and head restraints, seat belts and mirrors.
iii. Start the engine and move off.
iv. Select the correct road position for normal driving.
v. Use proper observation in all traffic conditions.
vi. Drive at speed suitable for road and traffic conditions.
vii. Change gear promptly to all risks.
viii. Change traffic lanes.
ix. Pass stationary vehicles.
x. Meet, overtake and cross the path of other vehicles.
xi. Turn right and left at junctions, including crossroads and roundabouts.
xii. Drive ahead at crossroads and roundabouts.
xiii. Keep a safe separation distance when following other traffic.
xiv. Act correctly at pedestrian crossings.
xv. Show proper regard for the safety of other road users with particular care towards the most vulnerable.
xvi. Drive on both urban and rural roads, and where possible on dual carriageways, keeping up with the flow of the traffic where it is safe and proper to do so.
xvii. Comply with traffic regulations and traffic signals given by the police, traffic wardens and other road users.
xviii. Stop the vehicle safely, normally and in an emergency, without locking the wheels.
xix. Turn the vehicle in the road to face the opposite way using the forward and reverse gears.
xx. Reverse the vehicle into a side road keeping reasonably close to the kerb.
xxi. Parallel parking while driving in a reverse gear.
xxii. Park the vehicle in a multi-storey car park or other parking bay, on the level, uphill and downhill, both in forward and reverse directions.
xxiii. Cross all types of railway crossings.

(2) The applicant must also know the importance of correct tyre pressures, the actions needed to avoid and correct skids and how to drive through floods and flooded areas. The applicant must also know what to do if involved in an accident or breakdown, including the special arrangements for accidents or break-down on a highway etc.

(3) The applicant must gain a sound knowledge of the special rules, regulations and driving techniques for highway driving before taking the driving test. After passing the test, lessons are recommended with an approved driving instructor before driving unsupervised on motorways.

Part II The Theoretical Test:

2. (1) The theoretical test should be divided into two parts. One should be a multiple-choice section, and the test-taker selects the answers. The multiple-choice section should contain at least 35 test items to be answered in 90 minutes. The test-taker must score at least 86% in order to pass this part of the test.

(2) The theoretical test shall include a test of hazard perception skills, and after the multiple-choice section there is a15- minute break before the hazard perception section starts. This should consists of 14 video clips, each lasting about one minute, which feature real road scenes and developing hazards of various types. There should be at least a total of 15 score-able hazards in the test and the student is assessed on the amount of time needed to spot the hazards.

(3) The sooner the test-taker responds, the higher the score will be. The highest possible score is five points. Thirteen of the clips should contain one score-able hazard, and one clip contains two hazards. The test-taker should have only one chance to respond to the hazard perception clips. Those applying for fresh driving license must score at least 75% in order to pass the hazard perception section.



Part III The Practical Test:
3. (1) The main objective is to determine if the applicant is able to drive safely and competently in various road and traffic conditions. If the student fails he or she is encouraged to take more training. If the student passes he or she is provided with a provisional license and the two-year probationary period starts. In order to be allowed to undergo the practical test the applicant must pass the theoretical test.

(2) The practical test should last for approximately 60 minutes and starts with an eyesight test. If the applicant is able to pass this test, i.e. able to read a car number plate in good daylight at 67 feet, approximately 20 metres, he or she is allowed to undergo the driving test. Then the applicant is required to drive around one of a number of set driving test routes which incorporate a range of different hazards and driving situations, generally representative of normal driving conditions. During the test the examiner should direct the applicant around the route whilst assessing and marking all aspects of the applicant’s performance. Each examiner is required to use one of a number of sets and approved driving test routes. Each test centre normally should use about 20 test routes and examiners are required to use each of those in equal proportion to the rest.
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(3) Driving instructors are encouraged to accompany their students on the test or to listen to the examiner’s debriefing at the end of the session. Apart from general driving, the applicant will be asked to carry out two of the following manoeuvres during the test.

a) Reversing around a corner
b) Turning in the road
c) Reverse parking
(4) The applicant may also be asked to carry out an emergency stop exercise. If the test-taker commits a number of different faults, he or she should fail the test.

(5)There are three categories of fault:

a) Dangerous fault – involving actual danger
b) Serious fault – potentially dangerous or serious errors
c) Driving fault – a significant error in driving technique or incorrect reaction to a situation not assessed as serious

(6)If the applicant commits one dangerous fault, one serious fault or more than 15 driving faults, this should result in failure. If the test-taker passes the test he or she shall be on probation for two years. If the driver gets six or more penalty points during this time, he or she shall lose the license. Then he or she has to re-apply for a provisional license and take all of the tests again.

(7) The test-taker should receive the test results and feedback information within 30 minutes after having finished the test. Feedback is given on any multiple-choice items answered incorrectly. In order to be approved the test-taker has to pass both parts of the test. If approved the test-taker will receive a Theory Test Pass certificate that is valid for two years. If the test-taker has not passed the practical test within these two years, he or she will have to retake the theoretical test.

Explanatory Memorandum:
This Bill seeks to amend the Federal Road Safety Commission (Establishment) Act to grant exclusive powers to the Federal Road Safety Corps to issue driver’s licences as well as make special provisions for the licensing of persons authorised to drive motor vehicles in order to ensure safety of lives on the highways and for other connected matters.

Need to Review Diver's Licensing Procedure in the Country

Background:
Road traffic accident remains a leading cause of trauma and admissions to the accidents and emergency units of most hospitals. Road traffic accidents continue to pose a problem in many places worldwide. Injuries and deaths resulting from road traffic accidents are on the rise annually.

Factors that contribute to high occurrences of road traffic accidents are largely preventable and they include bad roads, poor vehicular conditions recklessness on the part of the drivers, and neglect of traffic rules. Ranking high among these factors is the human element. Improperly educated drivers constitute a major road hazard on our roads. Neglect of traffic rules, recklessness, poor vehicular maintenance are all manifestations of inadequate driver education on road safety.

Sadly, the licensing procedure in the country leaves a lot to be desired. Observations indicate that all it takes for a person to acquire a driving licence in Nigeria today are: two passport photographs and the official fees. Once these two requirements are fulfilled the next day an applicant will definitely get a drivers licence, albeit through the back door. Nobody bothers about the driver’s driving ability and skills, hearing and visual acuity, general medical fitness and the ability of the driver to read and understand simple traffic codes which are critical elements in road safety.

Position of the Law on Licensing:
However, this a far cry from what the law provides, the position of the law on the issuance of driver’s licence are as follows:

Section 5 of the Federal Road Safety (Establishment) Act 2007 empowers the FRSC to make regulations as to the establishment, investigation and certification of driving schools, designing and producing driver’s licences among others. Pursuant to the said section the National Road Traffic Regulations 2004 was made.

Regulation 20(1) of the said Regulation empowers the Commission to establish model driving schools in each state of the Federation and the FCT and regulate the establishment and registration of private and government owned driving schools and shall set guidelines for the establishment of such driving schools.

Regulation 20(3) and (4) empowers the Commission to issue permits to such driving schools and to inspect from time to time all registered driving schools to ensure that they conform to standards specified by the Commission.

Regulation 22(2) provides that an applicant for fresh driver’s licence shall furnish evidence of training at an approved driving school and a learner’s permit and shall be accompanied with a certificate of visual acuity test and general medical fitness test as prescribed in Regulation 24(6).

Regulation 23(1) requires that an application for the issue or re-issue of a drivers
licence shall be accompanied by three copies of a recent passport photograph (which shall be printed from the same negative) of the head, full face, and shoulders of the applicant, the copy shall be certified as a true resemblance of the applicant by a Vehicle Inspection Officer.

Regulation 24(1) and 26(1) requires that before issuing a driver’s licence, the applicant must pass a driving test conducted by a Vehicle Inspection Officer, to show that he is capable of fully controlling a motor vehicle of the type and group for which he applied. The Commission shall not issue a driver’s licence to an applicant unless such applicant furnishes certificates of vision acuity and general fitness from any government hospital.

International Best Practices:
A critical analysis of the foregoing provisions of the law indicates that the Federal Road Safety Commission that was mandated by the National Assembly to handle issues of road safety has little or no role to play in the education, testing and issuance of driver’s licence apart from production of the driver’s licence. This constitutes a major hindrance to adequate monitoring and supervision of the issuance of driver’s licence by the Commission and has resulted in flagrant disregard of statutory provisions on licensing.

To correct this anomaly, it is necessary to review what other nations faced with similar challenges has done in the past to reduce the incidence of high accident rates on their highways. In 2002, an initiative was taken to study the quality of driver examination in Finland, Sweden, Norway and Northern Ireland. The preliminary results showed that there are both similarities and differences between the countries regarding the driving-license test. The study however showed that all countries require a candidate to pass a theoretical test before taking the practical test. In addition to this, Finland, Sweden and Norway require a candidate to take certain courses or a minimum number of hours of practical training before taking the driving test.

The main objective of driving tests is concerned with road safety, which means that those who lack the required competence to drive in traffic are not permitted to enter the system. Another function of the driving tests is to influence the training undertaken by learner drivers. The driving-license test is the only way to verify that the test-takers have acquired the knowledge and abilities specified in the curriculum. As a result of the restricted use of compulsory education, the quality of the student evaluation depends solely on the quality of the tests. Thus, the demands on the tests in terms of reliability and validity ought to be high.

The idea behind driver education is to provide the student with sufficient education to guarantee that he or she possesses the necessary attitudes, knowledge and abilities to pass the theoretical and practical test. During the last few years, a number of countries have made attempts to improve the students’ attitudes and capacity for self-evaluation by emphasising such areas in the curriculum. Since it is difficult to evaluate these aspects through testing, the best way for the system owner to affect and evaluate the students’ attitudes is through compulsory education.

Conclusions:
The conclusion of the study was that compulsory driver education combined with a theoretical and practical test of high quality constitutes the optimal approach for the system owners in terms of verifying that the student has reached the level of competence specified in the curriculum.

In order to further reduce the death toll on our highways it becomes imperative that we must equally adopt these international best practices that other countries have employed successfully to keep their accident rates on the highways low. Persons authorised to drive motor vehicles on our highways needs to be adequately educated on the necessary skills, attitudes and abilities they need to acquire before being allowed to drive on the highways.


The Commission should therefore be the sole authority responsible for issuing driver’s licence, developing the curriculum for drivers’ education, testing of applicants for driver’s licence, conducting medical fitness tests and handling everything necessary and incidental to granting an application for a driver’s licence. This must of necessity include capturing the image of the applicant or photograph onto the licence. This aspect incidentally is the main source of non-compliance as applicants are only required to present their passport photographs and the fees payable and a licence is automatically issued. The Commission therefore must be given the opportunity of physical assessment of the applicant before issuing him a driver’s licence.

President's Prolonged Absence: The Way Forward.

Introduction:
The prolonged absence of the president from the country has no doubt seriously hampered the inner workings of President Yar’Adua’s administration because many policy decisions which were to get the consent of the president were left unattended to. This was even made more complicated because the president did not hand over properly to his Deputy, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, before embarking on his latest medical trip to Saudi Arabia.

Going by the spirit of the 1999 Constitution, if President Yar'Adua had written a letter to the National Assembly it would have automatically paved the way for Vice President Jonathan Goodluck to properly take over power as Acting President in line with Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution which says:

"Whenever the President transmits to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives a written declaration that he is proceeding on vacation or that he is otherwise unable to discharge the functions of his office, until he transmits to them a written declaration to the contrary such functions shall be discharged by the Vice-President as Acting President."

Even though section 145 did not say what happens in a situation where the president fails to transmit such written declaration to the legislature as is presently the case. It is obvious that the formulators of the constitution did not contemplate that the country should be without somebody at the helm of affairs at any time, that is why section 146(1) stated clearly who should hold forth in the absence of the President.

The said section states as follows:
“The Vice-President shall hold the office of President if the office of President becomes vacant by reason of death or resignation, impeachment, permanent incapacity or the removal of the President from office for any other reason in accordance with section 143 of this Constitution”.

The framers of the constitution equally believed that those who would hold such high public office as strategic as the presidency would not ordinarily refuse to hand over power temporarily when they are on vacation or on sickbed knowing fully well that they do not lose such positions for the mere fact that they went on vacation or medical treatment. The framers of the constitution provided for the office of the Vice President in order to forestall the present situation in which we find ourselves as a result of President Yar’Adua’s refusal to hand over power to his deputy. That act in itself is a grave constitutional breach amounting to gross misconduct.

International Best Practice:
In other jurisdictions practising similar model of democracy such as ours, the honourable and most reasonable thing for an ailing President to do is to hand over power temporarily to his deputy when he knows that his health may be a barrier to carrying out his official functions.

For instance, two presidents of the United States (U.S.), found themselves in situations similar to ours. President Ronald Reagan underwent a colonoscopy procedure in July 1985, during which a villous adenoma, a pre-cancerous tumour, was discovered in his body. Before the operation, he told his countrymen that:
“I am about to undergo surgery during which time I will be briefly and temporarily incapable of discharging the constitutional powers and duties of the Office of the President of the United States.”
He then transferred his constitutional powers to then Vice President George Bush, (senior).

Again the second case was that of President George Bush, junior. He was scheduled to undergo a colonoscopy procedure on June 29, 2002, when he was expected to be under light sedation. Bush transferred his constitutional powers to then Vice President Dick Cheney. The U.S. was at war at the time and Bush was quoted as saying,
“I did so because we’re at war and I just want to be super – you know, super cautious.”

Implications of the President’s Absence:
The confusion and the unnecessary heating of the polity could have been avoided if President Yar'Adua's aides had advised him properly on the political implication of his not writing a letter to the National Assembly before jetting out of the country.
Consequently, anarchy is now the order of the day in governance of the country as the Vice President who should ordinarily be in charge of Government by the clear provisions of the Constitution is divested of all authority to call errant ministers to order. In what looked like a test of his authority last month, petroleum minister Rilwanu Lukman defied the vice president’s order to forgo the Christmas holiday and stay behind in Abuja to find a solution to the fuel problem, which surfaced suddenly early last month.

Lukman’s defiance of the vice president is a clear cut indication that the country is on auto pilot, with no one monitoring the actions of ministers, and the machinery of government has indeed grounded to a halt. The only reason the petroleum minister could have told off the vice president is because he knows the Vice President lacks the constitutional power to issue any directive to him, since he is not recognised as the acting president.
Conclusion:

The President’s negligent refusal to properly hand over power to his deputy thereby plunging the country into chaos and anarchy and generally grounding the governance of the country to a halt, with due respect, is a grave violation of the Constitution which tantamount gross misconduct and by the provisions of section 143 of the constitution, is an impeachable offence. Gross misconduct according to section 143(11) means:
"A grave violation or breach of the provisions of this Constitution or a misconduct of such nature as amounts in the opinion of the National Assembly to gross misconduct”.

The omission by the President in concert with the Federal Executive Council, is also an abdication of their constitutional responsibilities which should necessitate the invocation of section 146(1). The National Assembly members that have sworn to protect the Constitution must act decisively and without sentiments in order to resolve the constitutional crisis occasioned by this flagrant disregard of the constitution by the President and his aides.

The way forward clearly are; since the Federal Executive Council have decided not to carry out their constitutional function of passing a resolution on the state of health of the President and allowing the National Assembly to verify the state of health of the President pursuant to section 144(1)(b) of the Constitution. Therefore the National Assembly should either treat this infraction of the Constitution as gross misconduct and impeach the President for abandoning the ship of state rudderless; or, invoke the provisions of section 146(1) and treat the President’s prolonged absence from his constitutional responsibilities due to ill-health as amounting to permanent disability within the context of section 146 of the 1999 Constitution.