NEWS
Vehicle Inspection Officers (VIO) Take Legal Fight to Supreme Court After Court of Appeal Bars Fines and Vehicle Seizures in Abuja
The Department of Road Traffic Services (DRTS), widely known as Vehicle Inspection Officers (VIO), has escalated its legal battle to the apex court following a recent judgment that prohibits it from imposing fines or seizing vehicles of motorists who violate traffic regulations.
The Court of Appeal in Abuja had affirmed a ruling that bars the Directorate of Road Traffic Services and its operatives from stopping motorists, confiscating their vehicles, or levying fines. The decision stems from a fundamental rights enforcement suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1695/2023, filed by public interest lawyer Mr. Abubakar Marshal.
In a unanimous verdict delivered by Justice Oyejoju Oyewumi and a three-member panel of the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal, the appellate court upheld the October 16, 2024, judgment of the Federal High Court, stating there was no reason to overturn the ruling. The judgment effectively prohibits the VIO from direct enforcement of fines or vehicle impoundments on public roads.
However, the Acting Director of the DRTS, Deborah Osho, expressed dissatisfaction with the appellate decision and hinted at plans to take the matter to the Supreme Court during an interaction with journalists in Abuja.
“We will certainly appeal,” Osho said, emphasizing the necessity of strict enforcement to maintain traffic discipline. She highlighted that alternative enforcement measures, such as issuing tickets to offenders, have been insufficient, with motorists owing more than N409 million in unpaid fines.
Osho further defended the operational methods of VIOs, stating, “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.”
She questioned the feasibility of traffic management without enforcement, asking rhetorically, “Have you ever seen anywhere in the world where traffic is well coordinated without enforcement, and you think it will go well?”
The looming appeal to the Supreme Court signals a continued legal standoff between the VIO and civil rights advocates, raising questions over the balance between motorists’ rights and effective traffic regulation in Nige
ria’s capital.