₦airaland Forum

The Department of Road Traffic Services, also known as Vehicle Inspection Officers, has said it will “certainly” appeal a judgment barring it from imposing fines or impounding vehicles of offending motorists.

The Acting Director of the DRTS, Deborah Osho, in an exclusive phone interview with The PUNCH on Thursday, lamented the growing “lawlessness” in the Federal Capital Territory since the High Court ruling.

The Court of Appeal, Abuja Division, on Thursday, affirmed the lower court judgment barring the DRTS and VIO from stopping motorists, confiscating vehicles, or imposing fines on road users.

In a unanimous decision delivered by a three-member panel, the appellate court held that there was no basis to overturn the Federal High Court’s ruling of October 16, 2024, which prohibited VIO officials from harassing motorists.

The appeal filed by the VIO challenging the lower court judgment was dismissed for lacking merit, in a lead judgment delivered by Justice Oyejoju Oyewumi.

Reacting to the judgment, Osho said, “We will certainly appeal. As a correspondent, do you see what is happening in the city right now? Don’t you see how dirty the city is?

“I don’t know why we Nigerians don’t like to be corrected. Just look at Airport Road—they have turned that place practically into a one-way. You cannot enforce, you cannot impound, but if you give them a ticket, they won’t come to pay. What do you want us to do? The thing is not funny.”

Osho further disclosed that despite alternative enforcement methods, such as issuing tickets, offenders owed more than N409m, adding that traffic could not be well coordinated without strict enforcement.

“We don’t even impound like that. What we do is, if you commit an offence, whether you take it or go away, you are already captured, and your bill will be sent to you.

“If I give you my laptop now, we have almost 409 million not paid, because they won’t come to pay, and because we cannot enforce our arrest or do anything.

“Have you ever seen anywhere in the world where traffic is well coordinated without enforcement, and you think it will go well?” the VIO chief questioned.

Recall that Justice Nkeonye Maha of the Federal High Court had earlier ruled that no law empowered VIO officials to stop, impound, confiscate, seize, or impose fines on motorists.

The ruling followed a fundamental rights suit, FHC/ABJ/CS/1695/2023, filed by public interest lawyer Abubakar Marshal.

Marshal told the court that VIO operatives forcefully stopped him at Jabi District on December 12, 2023, and confiscated his vehicle without lawful justification.

He asked the court to declare their actions wrongful, oppressive, unlawful, and a gross violation of his fundamental rights.

In granting the reliefs sought, Justice Maha restrained the DRTS, its agents, and assigns from impounding or confiscating vehicles or imposing fines on motorists, describing such actions as oppressive and unlawful.

The court also issued a perpetual injunction preventing further violations of Nigerians’ rights to freedom of movement, presumption of innocence, and the right to own property.

The judge held that only a court of competent jurisdiction could impose sanctions or fines on motorists.

She further ruled that the respondents had violated the applicant’s constitutional right to own property under Section 42 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) and Article 14 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

The court held that the respondents lacked statutory powers to impound vehicles or impose fines, stressing that doing so breached motorists’ rights to fair hearing, freedom of movement, and presumption of innocence under Sections 6(6)(b), 36(1), 36(, 36(12), 41, and 42 of the Constitution, as well as Articles 2, 7(3), 12, and 14 of the African Charter.

Marshal, represented by a legal team led by Femi Falana (SAN), had sought N500m in general and aggravated damages and an apology in three national newspapers.

The court instead awarded N2.5m in damages.

The respondents included the DRTS, its Director, the Abuja Area Commander, identified as Mr Leo, the team leader, Mr Solomon Onoja, and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory.

Dissatisfied with the ruling, they lodged an appeal, which the Court of Appeal dismissed, thereby affirming the lower court’s decision.

garykoeman:
By Vincent Alicho

The controversies that trailed Prof. Achebe’s last book—There Was a Country: A Personal History Of Biafra—came from different perspectives. While some people saw the book as one that came to shed more light on the events of the Nigerian/Biafran war, others saw it as a book that should not have been published in the first place.


The proponents of the second group came up with so many reasons—from the book being an attack on some personalities and a particular ethnic group, to Achebe being anti-Nigeria, one whose book, they claim, fanned the embers of disunity.


But one of the reasons given by this group that caught my attention was the one that said that Achebe was bitter with a particular ethnic group because he failed to win the Nobel Prize in Literature which a kinsman of this ethnic group won in 1986.


Even now that he has died, some articles have been written on this issue of Nobel Prize; while some are regretting that Achebe did not win the prize, others are pointing out from their personal views what Achebe should have written or should not have written in order to win the prize.

garykoeman:
Achebe was a trib-alis-tic writer. His last work gave him up as one.

MaziObinnaokija:
BADARU doesn't knw anything about Defence? This position is clearly for people with Military experience/background not a gworo chewing thing.. E remain that Matawalle to go

Adaisback:
With what I have seen and read so far , I can proudly say I am proud of Chinau Achebe

bigpicture001:
He won Nobel prize for literature not peace..

But I am so suprised, he didn't win it with any book, but a quote...

Na wa ooo

Burob:
Biafra man done turn Nigerian patriot?

Very funny indeed.

Burob:
Coming to support your wailing bros abi?

Hope u can maintain the momentum till 2031 o.

Burob:
Wandering Wailer on the move.

Paramount01:
Pls what is the inflation now?

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) today removed the limit on cash deposits and raised the weekly cash withdrawal limit across all channels to N500,000, up from N100,000.

The apex bank disclosed this in a circular to all banks titled “Revised Cash-Related Policies”, signed by Dr. Rita Sike, Director, Financial Policy & Regulation Department.

According to the CBN, the revisions form part of ongoing efforts to moderate the rising cost of cash management, address security concerns, and curb money laundering risks associated with the country’s heavy reliance on cash. It noted that the cash-related policies previously issued in response to evolving circumstances were aimed at reducing cash usage and promoting the adoption of electronic payment channels. However, with time, the need to streamline and update these provisions to reflect present-day realities became necessary.

Effective January 1, 2026, the circular announced several key changes. The cumulative deposit limit has been removed, and the fee previously charged on excess deposits will no longer apply.

The CBN also stated that the cumulative weekly withdrawal limit across all channels has been reviewed to N500,000 for individuals and N5 million for corporates. Withdrawals above these thresholds will attract excess withdrawal charges as specified in the circular. In addition, the special monthly authorisation that allowed individuals to withdraw N5 million and corporates N10 million once a month has been abolished.

For Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), daily withdrawal remains capped at N100,000 per customer, with a maximum of N500,000 weekly, which forms part of the overall weekly withdrawal limit applicable to all channels, including point-of-sale (POS) transactions.

The circular further disclosed that excess withdrawals above the stipulated limits will attract charges of 3 per cent for individuals and 5 per cent for corporate customers, shared in the ratio of 40 per cent to the CBN and 60 per cent to the operating bank or financial institution.

Banks have also been directed to load all currency denominations in ATMs, while the existing limit on over-the-counter encashment of third-party cheques remains pegged at N100,000. Such withdrawals will also be counted as part of the cumulative weekly limit.

Additionally, banks are required to render monthly returns to the relevant supervisory departments, including the Banking Supervision Department, Other Financial Institutions Supervision Department, and the Payments System Supervision Department.

The CBN clarified that revenue-generating accounts of federal, state, and local governments, as well as the accounts of microfinance banks and primary mortgage banks held with commercial and non-interest banks, are exempted from the new withdrawal and excess-fee rules. However, the long-standing exemption previously enjoyed by embassies, diplomatic missions, and aid-donor agencies has been removed.

tiger28:
Ppl keep talking about HOW prices skyrocketed with Tinubu, have they forgotten that subsidy was removed?

By the way, Samklef is from IMO STATE!!!!

emkz:
I think those presenting budget should first come and tell us how the past budget performed.

What was budgeted and what was allocated?

In my view, we around have a tradition of legislative and state review. Three months before presenting a new budget, let state executives present their projects and how they utilized the budgets.

The ritual of budget presentation is getting state. We remember a governor who presented budgets and called them names like: Budget of Infinite Transposition, Budget of Kinetic Crystallization, Budget of Qabalistic Densification, Budget of Olimpotic Meritemasis, Budget of Blush and Bliss,
Budget of Conjugated Agglutination, but failed to budget for Catastorphic Cannibalism into Failure as he failed to produce budget performance reports and failed as governor.

creativejagaban:
...see clown 🤡 why not release your own figures

You always expect negative figures and when the negative figures are released you jump to high heaven rejoicing.

.. but when the figures show any positive sign you become sad and start abusing the national bureau of statistics. Are you related to Chidi Odinkalu, because the man can lie 🤥

LibertyRep:
Certificate of expulsion

Wife's faction will also counter issue a certificate of membership termination before weekend.

Sonnobax15:

Reno should be an ambassador to either Columbia or Mexico

I know he'll be very hard working, especially when it'd come to exposing of drug cartels

Reno must be an ambassador

ayinde2020:
Election is local and meant for local people

Kreesxxx:
Wike called him privately and told him. But he joked with Wikes counsel.

lionshare:
I can confirm he’s been rejected by APC osun state.

lionshare:
Dey play---Person wey APC don reject

seunlayi:
In all situation here in Nigeria. God will always give us the option to thank Him. Atiku and Obi need to do giveaway

Lithiumite:
Even okonji knows the pedigree ot these men.....we can't all be world bank directors or international investment czars but wale edun has made his mark and your pointless begrudging of the finance guru doesn't take anything away from his pedigree.

This is the final time I would condescend to your jaundiced myopia claiming a man that was borrowing to defend the naira keeping it artificially low at 460 to the detriment of the whole economy.....you claim such a man has done a better job than the one who forthrightly ended the lacuna in our financial sector by ending subsidies, dysfunctional arbitrage that only benefited a privileged few......there is no point going further on this,you and your ilk are propagandist at best with your anti tinubu narrative which many sane minds are always quick to shoot down.