THE NATION
‘One chance’ is a popular pidgin phrase that means one has entered a situation that he/she is unable to immediately escape from.
This crime occurs when one boards a bus which then leads him/her to being kidnapped.
The most vulnerable passengers to this heinous act are those who board buses along routes, especially at points where there are no designated bus stops or where the buses are not required to park before picking up passengers.
By being aware of your safety while on buses and even private cabs, you can greatly reduce the risk of attack or assault.
Here are six safety tips to avoid one chance in Nigerian cities:
1. Be aware and stay alert
Always stay alert no matter how tired you are. Your driver could be just as dangerous as a common criminal.
So you need to be very active even as a passenger.
If you feel uneasy or threatened, change your seat or alert the driver. If needed, get off at the next busy bus-stop.
2. Always inform family members or close friends of your movement
Let someone close to you know your routine or travel schedule.
Two crimes one could easily fall prey to will travelling is kidnapping and robbery, so it’s important to inform your friends and family of your itinerary before embarking on any journey.
3. Board only registered, licensed commercial vehicles
Some vehicles carry people without license plates, some use foreign license plates, and some hide their license plates because of lax enforcement of the law.
Commercial cars are assigned specific colors in numerous states. Experts say that these are warning signs to be aware of.
4. Whatsapp live location:
If you want people to know where you are, turn on live locations in chats where it’s enabled.
The WhatsApp location feature can be used to share one’s location in a WhatsApp message.
On an iPhone: Go to WhatsApp > Account > Privacy > Live Location to see a list of the chats where you’re sharing this information, and remove anywhere you’d like to restrict live location access.
On an Android phone: Go to WhatsApp > Menu > Account > Privacy > Live Location. From there, you can allow WhatsApp to access your device location while using the app or deny access.
5. Use designated motor parks
Many of the criminals who do one-chance operate outside designated bus parks.
Some operate near the bus stops, to give an impression that they are genuine, but it’s said not to be enough.
6. Avoid vehicles with tinted glasses
Vehicles with tinted glasses are not that rampant but when you identify one, it is not a bad idea if you decided not to pay attention to such vehicles.
It is however advisable to avoid public vehicles with tinted glasses, and other cars used for public transport.
