Drugs Will Make You See a Trailer as a Bike’ – NDLEA Warns Abia Tricycle Operators …   *ASTOPU Holds Safety Seminar as Govt. Urges Compliance With Traffic Rules 

Speaking at a one-day seminar organized by the Abia State Tricycle Operators Union (ASTOPU), Aba Zone, the Assistant Commander of Narcotics in charge of Prevention, Sensitisation and Training, Frank Nwaohamuo, said stimulants create a false sense of strength.

“Stimulating drugs will give you the false impression that you have all the strength in the whole world, whereas it’s affecting your brain, it’s affecting your spinal cord, and it’s affecting your sense of judgement,” Nwaohamuo said on Monday, June 29, 2026, in Aba.

“Under the influence of these drugs, you may see a trailer as if it’s a bike, and you are in trouble. Drugs will distort your sense of judgement, it will distort your decision-making mechanism… So under the influence of drugs, you may even be flying and tell your passengers that you are very slow, that you’ve not even started,” he added.

Declaring the seminar open on behalf of the state government, the Commissioner for Transport, Dr. Chimezie Isaac Ukaegbu, urged operators to become ambassadors of road safety by strictly adhering to traffic regulations.

The Commissioner, represented by the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Transport, Associate Professor Obioma Reuben Nwogbe, said the programme was an opportunity to acquire life-saving knowledge.

“The state government expected every participant to leave the seminar better informed and more committed to promoting safe transportation across the state,” he said.

Dr. Ukaegbu reaffirmed the Alex Otti administration’s commitment to building a modern, safe, orderly and efficient transportation system. He said achieving it requires the collective efforts of operators, unions, and regulatory agencies.

“With this training and seminar, the ASTOPU Chairman is going to take the tricycle operators to the next level in terms of safety, in terms of security, in terms of operation,” the Commissioner stated.

He stressed the need for operators to obey traffic laws, respect other road users, maintain their vehicles regularly, avoid dangerous driving, and prioritise passenger safety.

The Divisional Police Officer, Abayi Aba, CSP Okereke Ogbonnaya Amos, described the training as a welcome development and urged that it be made a continuum. He added that operators should also be trained to relate security information to agencies.

“It’s a nice programme. How I wish that the programme would continue to educate them on their safety and how to relate information to the security agencies in order to tackle security problems in the state,” Amos said.

Unit Commander, Federal Road Safety Corps, Aba, Uduma Uduma, said the seminar aimed to create a safe motoring environment as improved roads had led to higher speeds.

“So what we are doing today is to sensitise them on the need for them to be safety conscious while driving on our roads,” Uduma stated.

ASTOPU Aba Zone Chairman, Comrade Victor Azubuike, said the seminar was organized to educate operators on road security, safety, traffic rules, defensive driving, vehicle maintenance, financial management, and health insurance.

Participants, including Unit Chairman, Mr. Chinagorom Azu, and High Life Cemetery Unit Chairman, Pastor Victor Mbah, said they benefited from lessons on safe driving, drug avoidance, passenger safety, and security.

They commended Governor Otti for road improvements and ASTOPU for organizing the seminar, noting “they have never seen such a thing like that.”