A bill aimed at putting an end to religious preaching and hawking inside commercial vehicles scaled all legislative hurdles and was passed quietly by the Senate a few days ago. The bill, tagged Federal Road Safety Corps (Amendment) Bill, 2026, seeks to strengthen road safety enforcement and curb practices considered capable of distracting drivers. It is now awaiting presidential assent. When it becomes law, its built-in sanction regime will impose specific punishments for violators. These include preachers and traders in commercial vehicles, as well as motorists who refuse to cooperate with officials of the FRSC during roadside breath tests conducted on reasonable suspicion. The amendment, said to be part of a broader review of the FRSC Act, will use stiffer penalties for traffic offences to bolster compliance with traffic regulations, reduce road carnage, and enhance safety on Nigerian roads.

The objective of the proposed law can hardly be faulted. Legislating against potentially dangerous and unacceptable activities that could negatively impact the concentration of commercial drivers, thereby endangering the lives of passengers, would seem to be the right thing to do. However, many find it offensive that the proposed law places preaching in the same category as commercial hawking. While one involves the exchange of goods for money, the other involves words, ideas, and faith. This distinction is crucial, given the sensitivity of the faithful, but the proposed law does not make it so.  In any case, the pertinent question is whether these practices, objectionable as they may seem, have actually been proven to contribute to road accidents. If there is empirical evidence to support the assumptions upon which the proposed law is predicated, then by all means it should become law. However, it is unclear whether data was made available on the nexus between these activities and road crashes when the bill was undergoing legislative scrutiny.

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There are other issues that require further clarification. One is the thin line between preaching and praying in buses. While the holiness and moral conduct of followers of different faiths in the country could be a subject of interrogation, it is undeniable that Nigerians are highly religious and believe that the Supreme Being plays a significant role in human affairs. That is why, in many instances, people pray inside commercial vehicles at the commencement of journeys and/or when they sense that danger is imminent. Will the proposed law not infringe on the constitutional rights of citizens to practise their religion without let or hindrance if it effectively bans praying in buses? Will it not, in specific terms, constitute a clear violation of Sections 38(1), 39(1), and 42(1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria? There is also the issue of the economic realities facing many Nigerians and businesses, especially nano and small-scale enterprises. Many have had to improvise by using agents in commercial vehicles to reach potential customers because of the cost implications of opening multiple outlets to sell their products. Would banning trading or hawking in commercial vehicles not compound the economic challenges of these people and businesses? While the objective of the proposed law can hardly be contested, is there no other way to reorient motorists to remain focused while driving, instead of imposing a blanket ban on preaching and trading in buses?

Another issue is the doubtful efficacy of the proposed law in reining in these practices, especially in the likely absence of evidence to prosecute offenders. For instance, while the objective may be to avoid distractions on the road, it may be hard to find a Nigerian who will report another Nigerian to the authorities for preaching or hawking on a public bus, given the country’s religious character and economic realities. How do you establish guilt, and where and how do you impose punishment? How do you gather evidence when most public buses have no video recording facilities?

Again, the proposed law expects FRSC officials to subject drivers to roadside breath tests to identify motorists who drive under the influence of alcohol. This is the way to go, given the effect of alcohol on cognitive function and the resultant poor judgment. We support any measure that will prevent or punish drivers for drinking while driving. However, asking the FRSC to enforce this aspect is fraught with danger because this is traditionally a police function. The corps cannot reasonably be expected to compel drivers to take a breathalyser test, especially inebriated ones, because its officials do not bear arms. Or is the government considering the long-standing request by the FRSC to carry firearms? The FRSC has for some time seemed to focus on revenue generation: booking traffic offenders and directing them to make payments to its accounts at designated points. And often, it does not matter whether the infractions for which fines were paid have been rectified by the offending motorists.

If there is any discernible good that the proposed law may do, it is to jolt the corps out of its protracted lethargy and distraction, and compel it to face its core mandate of accident prevention. Truth be told, the alleged objectionable practices, especially hawking and preaching in commercial buses, which the proposed law seeks to ban, detract from international best practices. But every jurisdiction has its peculiarities, and laws are made to regulate the conduct of citizens with a view to promoting safety, security, wellbeing, comfort, and happiness for all, or at least the vast majority — not to annul their rights or compound their existing problems. Thus, while we do not object to sanity in public buses, we urge that the Nigerian public be sufficiently consulted, and that the effect of the bill on society, especially its unintended consequences, be thoroughly considered before it becomes law. All grey areas should be addressed before the President assents to the bill.