The offense of dangerous driving

The offense of dangerous driving.

It’s Yuletide. The time of the year where most people engage on road trips to their different destinations. Motorists tend to drive with total disregard to road signs, over speeding and driving recklessly.

It is the writer’s advice that even as you embark on your road trips for the holidays bear it in mind it is an offense, a serious offense in Nigeria to drive recklessly and cause the death of another person or drive at a speed or manner which is dangerous to the public.  This offense carries the punishment of not less than 7 years jail term for the offender.

This is the provisions of section 5 of the Federal Highway Act. This provision will be reproduced here for your perusal:

Any person who causes the death of another person by the driving of a motor vehicle on a Federal highway recklessly, or at a speed or in a manner which is dangerous to the public, having regard to all the circumstances of the case, including the nature, condition and use of the Federal highway, and the amount of traffic which is actually at the time, or which might reasonably be expected to be, on the Federal highway, shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to imprisonment for a term of seven years.

It’s better to drive carefully and resist the urge to over speed so you don’t become an offender with seven years jail time waiting for you.