FRSC Laments Loss Of Over 120 Officers To Reckless Driving In 2025
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has disclosed that no fewer than 120 of its officers were killed in the line of duty in 2025, largely as a result of reckless driving and road user indiscipline, even as new data shows a rise in road traffic crashes and fatalities during the recent festive period.
The Corps Marshal, Shehu Mohammed, revealed this on Wednesday in Abuja while briefing the media on Operation Zero and the Corps’ overall performance in 2025.
He described the deaths of FRSC personnel as “tragic and unacceptable,” stressing that officers enforcing traffic laws are increasingly becoming victims of the same violations they are deployed to prevent.
According to the Corps Marshal, an analysis of crash data from 15 December 2025 to 15 January 2026 showed that total road traffic crashes increased from 665 in the 2024/2025 festive season to 687 in 2025/2026, representing a 3.4 per cent rise.
He said fatalities also increased from 571 to 597, while injuries rose from 2,462 to 2,522.
He added that the number of persons involved in crashes climbed from 5,761 to 5,942.
Despite the grim figures, Mohammed noted that 2,792 victims were rescued without injury, up from 2,697 the previous year, attributing the improvement to enhanced emergency response and rescue operations.
He said the most severe crashes occurred along major interstate corridors, with mass-casualty incidents recorded on routes such as Zuba–Kaduna–Zaria with 39 deaths, Jos–Bauchi/Gombe–Bauchi–Darazo–Potiskum 49 deaths, Abuja–Lokoja 28 deaths, Benin–Asaba–Awka 12 deaths, and Mai Adua–Daura–Kazaure–Dambata experiencing 18 deaths.
Most of the crashes, he said, were caused by speeding, dangerous overtaking, loss of control, tyre bursts, and brake failure.
“Speed remains the single greatest killer on Nigerian roads,” the Corps Marshal said, adding that speed violations alone accounted for 41 per cent of identified crash causes in December 2025.
He warned that the same recklessness has also led to the deaths of FRSC officers working on highways nationwide.
According to him, enforcement data showed that offenders apprehended during the festive operation rose from 28,170 to 29,317, while offences booked increased from 31,829 to 33,190.
“Through intensified mobile court operations, 1,276 offenders were arraigned, with 1,105 convicted,” he said.
