Nigerian actress and activist Kate Henshaw has publicly criticized the traffic laws and pedestrian facilities in Nigeria comparing to those in the developed countries. Speaking to News Central TV, she explained that, unlike in other parts of the world, pedestrians are not respected in Nigeria.
According to Henshaw, Nigerian pedestrians suffer from problems that are not present in developed countries where traffic laws do not give proper care or regard to pedestrians. She accused the Nigerian Highway Code of not providing adequate protection to pedestrians, further pointing out the fact that, while the law may claim to grant pedestrians the right of way, in real life it is otherwise.
The actress also gave an example of an incident in Canada where they found that drivers regulate traffic even when such signals as traffic lights are not put into operation. She used this example of the type of system Nigeria should aim for; explaining that change in attitude towards orderliness and compliance with traffic laws by all stakeholders is possible.
