[dropcap]T[/dropcap]o sharpen their skills and make them more civil and professional in their activities, Lagos State has begun certification training for bus conductors in the state.
The training, which started on Monday, 22nd August, was held at the Lagos State Drivers’ Institute, Oshodi.
Speaking at the opening of the one-day training and accreditation of bus conductors, the Chief Executive Officers of Lagos State Drivers’ Institute (LASDRI), Mr Philip Ogunlade said, ”the purpose of the exercise is to impart professional skills in the members of Bus Conductors Association of Nigeria(BCAN), as well as improve public confidence and perception of them.”
According to Ogunlade, what the institute do is to train, re-train and certify drivers, but for the first time in the history of Nigeria, bus conductors are being trained to become better human beings on the road and relate better with the commuters and other road users.
” We are happy to be part of this noble inventions because it will enable us to take their data, identify whom they are and the vehicle they work with,” adding that, this will help the government in security areas, so the problem of ‘ one chance’ vehicles will be reduced to the barest minimum. That is why we have started computing their date for easy identification,” he explained
He said, ‘ the institute would not rest on his oars at ensuring bus conductors and transport unions in the state embrace the state’s traffic laws.”
‘ It is not going to be the affair of the executive alone,” he added,” we will go all out to ensure that other members of the association undergo training at the institute. He promised to work assiduously with association and other unions to ensure that they bring their members for the training.
”On our part, we have began an enlightenment campaign for the various union; starting with the Iyana Ipaja branch and next week, we will be conducting the training going for the Mile2 branch,” he said
In his reaction, the National President, BCAN, Mr Israel Adeshola who himself had been a conductor for 21 years described the exercise as a beautiful one and a new dawn for conductors in the country.
Before now, the perception the public had about bus conductors was that of hooliganism but with this training, the job of conductors will be regarded as a profession that must be accorded respect.
Adeshola who said the association will move from one park to another to ensure their members are sensitised on the benefits of such trainings expressed the association’s gratitude to the Lagos State Government and promised to collaborate with it to ensure the bus conductors obey state’s traffic law.
He urged other state governments to replicate the training in their states.
