Tragic Road Accident Sparks Calls for Stricter Enforcement of Transport Laws
The Lagos State chapter of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has raised urgent concerns over the safety of students and commuters on major roads in the state. This comes after a fatal accident that claimed the lives of two students from the Lagos State University of Science and Technology (LASUSTECH). The incident occurred on Saturday, November 8, 2025, at the Powerline Junction, inward Ikorodu Roundabout, Lagos.
The tragedy was confirmed in a joint statement issued by the NANS Joint Campus Committee Chairman, Abdul-Raheem Abdul-Quadri, and Public Relations Officer, Ridwan Ajayi, on Monday. The statement expressed deep sorrow over the loss of two promising students and called for immediate action to prevent similar incidents in the future.
Details of the Incident
The deceased students were identified as Oluwaseyitan Afolabi Emmanuel, a newly admitted 200-level Direct Entry student of Banking and Finance, College of Applied Social Sciences, and Ayomide Jagun, a 300-level student of Mechatronics Engineering, College of Engineering and Technology.
According to reports from the university management and the Students’ Consultative Assembly, while initial accounts suggested a higher number of casualties, only two of the deceased were LASUSTECH students. The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) attributed the accident to an unregistered truck loaded with sand that suffered brake failure, leading to a multi-vehicle collision.
NANS Condemns Negligence and Infrastructure Failures
NANS described the tragedy as preventable and condemned what it referred to as the nation’s “recurring culture of negligence and infrastructural failure.” The association emphasized the importance of prioritizing public safety, transport regulation, and student protection.
“We mourn not just as fellow students but as a family wounded by the nation’s recurring culture of negligence and infrastructural failure,” the statement read. “Every life lost to avoidable accidents is a silent indictment of the system’s failure to protect our students.”
Calls for Action and Collaboration
In response to the incident, NANS urged the Lagos State Government, particularly the Ministry of Transportation, to intensify enforcement against unregistered and unroadworthy trucks. It also called on the Ministry of Works and Infrastructure to conduct an immediate assessment of accident-prone corridors within Ikorodu and its environs.
The association further recommended that LASUSTECH management strengthen its student welfare and safety coordination mechanisms in partnership with LASTMA and other agencies. “The LASUSTECH management must deepen its collaboration with safety agencies to prevent a recurrence of this tragedy,” NANS stated.
Condolences and Continued Concerns
Extending condolences to the bereaved families, NANS said, “We extend our heartfelt condolences to the families of Oluwaseyitan Afolabi Emmanuel and Ayomide Jagun, to the management and students of LASUSTECH, and to all who mourn this painful loss. Their dreams were bright, their futures were valid, and their memories will remain eternal within the collective conscience of the Nigerian student community.”
Meanwhile, the LASUSTECH management, through its spokesperson, Lanre Kuye, also mourned the victims, describing the incident as a painful loss to the university community.
Rising Concerns Over Road Safety
The recent tragedy adds to a growing number of road crashes in Lagos State involving heavy-duty vehicles. Just last week, a tricyclist was killed after a truck crashed into three vehicles at the Ekoro Junction along the Abule-Egba/Command Road. Less than 24 hours later, at least eight people were hospitalized when another truck rammed into eight vehicles on the Otedola Bridge section of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on Wednesday night.