The Federal Road Safety Corps has expanded its volunteer road-safety workforce in Abia State with the induction of 200 new Special Marshals, who have been tasked with helping to reduce road crashes and promote safer driving practices across the state.

The new marshals were inducted at the FRSC Sector Headquarters in Umuahia, where the Abia Sector Commander, Ngozi Ezeoma, urged them to approach their responsibilities with discipline, patriotism, integrity and professionalism.

Ezeoma described the decision by the inductees to join the Special Marshals as a demonstration of their commitment to protecting lives and improving safety on Nigerian roads.

She stressed that the new volunteers must maintain respect for all road users and ensure that their conduct reflects the values and objectives of the Federal Road Safety Corps.

The sector commander also called on the inductees to work closely with regular FRSC personnel and support the command’s activities in enforcement, public education and other road-safety initiatives.

She said their contribution would be important in the Corps’ efforts to achieve a significant reduction in road traffic crashes across Abia State.

Responding on behalf of the newly inducted marshals, the State Coordinator of Special Marshals, RS 9.3, Abia Sector Command, Ven. Kingsley Wachi, described the Special Marshals as the legally empowered volunteer arm of the FRSC.

According to him, their responsibilities extend beyond conventional road enforcement, allowing them to reach communities and different sections of society with road-safety messages and interventions.

The induction ceremony also featured a keynote address by the Abia State Commissioner for Transport, Chimezie Ukaegbu, titled “Discipline, Patriotism and Volunteerism: The Hallmarks of an Effective Special Marshal.”

Ukaegbu described the Special Marshal uniform as a symbol of responsibility, stressing that authority must be accompanied by discipline and integrity.

He urged the inductees to understand the significance of the role they had accepted and to conduct themselves in a manner that would earn the confidence of members of the public.

The latest induction comes as road safety remains a major concern in Nigeria, where road crashes continue to cause deaths, injuries and significant economic losses.

The FRSC’s Special Marshal programme provides the Corps with additional support from volunteers who assist in road-safety education, traffic management, enforcement-related activities and community mobilisation.

With the addition of the 200 new members, the Abia command is expected to have a larger pool of volunteers available to support its regular personnel, particularly in public enlightenment and community-level road-safety campaigns.

The FRSC has continued to emphasise the importance of responsible driving, compliance with traffic regulations and cooperation among road users as key measures for reducing crashes.

The new Special Marshals will therefore be expected to complement these efforts by taking road-safety awareness closer to motorists, passengers and communities across Abia.

The Corps’ latest move underscores the importance of combining enforcement with public education as authorities continue efforts to make Nigerian roads safer and reduce preventable loss of lives.