The Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Corps, Shehu Mohammed, has expressed deep concern over the growing cases of bribery, indiscipline, and drug abuse among officers of the corps.
Speaking at the 2025 Half-Year Strategy Session in Abuja on Wednesday, he said the misconduct of some personnel is damaging the image of the FRSC and weakening public trust.
“Reports reveal that there are challenges in our enforcement operations due to patrol misconduct, rising cases of indiscipline, bribery and corruption, poor command oversight, absenteeism, drug abuse, and increasing incivility toward motorists,” he said.
The session, which had the theme *Driving Change from Within: Reinforcing Integrity, Accountability, and Performance*, focused on internal reforms and discipline within the corps.
Mohammed warned commanders to take full responsibility for their officers’ actions, saying failure to act would only worsen the situation.
“Commanding officers must put in effort to manage emerging behavioural threats affecting our productivity and public perception,” he said.
He explained that the culture of compromise and ethical failure is harming the agency’s image.
“We need to confront the culture of compromise and address the ethical decay in the Corps which is affecting our integrity and public perspective,” he added.
He said officers must be ready to face disciplinary actions when found guilty but also mentioned that good performance would be rewarded.
“There is a need to enforce standards against absenteeism, apathy and duty abandonment in the Corps; as well as reward performance and accountability as a motivating factor for improvement in the system,” he stated.
Due to funding problems, he advised field officers to look for creative ways to keep the work going.
“COs must be innovative in strategic partnerships in the face of funding challenges. We must improve our relationship with State Governments to support some of our critical operations,” he added.
Despite these challenges, Mohammed said the corps has achieved progress on the international stage, pointing to Nigeria’s recent win of the Kofi Annan Road Safety Award and its selection as the host of the African Association of Road Safety Lead Agencies’ secretariat.
“These achievements have translated the status of the FRSC into a lead agency in road safety administration in Africa,” he noted.
He also spoke about the new FRSC Amendment Bill, which has passed the House of Representatives and is awaiting Senate approval. If passed, the FRSC will be renamed the Nigeria Road Safety Commission and will get a special armed squad.
“The FRSC Establishment Act 2007 will change to The Nigeria Road Safety Commission Act 2024,” he said.
He explained that the changes will also give the new commission the right to operate on all public roads and improve staff salaries.
“It is expected that both Officers and Men of the corps will be committed to excellence in service,” Mohammed said.
He also talked about the recent promotion exercise, saying that 3 Assistant Corps Marshals have been promoted to Deputy Corps Marshals, 18 Corps Commanders to ACMs, and over 1,200 other officers were also promoted.
In another step to improve safety, the FRSC signed a deal with the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau to work together on transport safety.
“The signing of the MOU with NSIB is making all our environment safer. Not just the aviation space, but also the road and the railway,” Mohammed stated.
NSIB Director General, Captain Alex Badeh Jr., said the partnership is a step forward for transport safety in Nigeria.
