The Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal has confirmed the ban on the Vehicle Inspection Office (VIO) and awarded Abubakar Marshal a cost of one million naira.
The Court of Appeal upheld the previous ruling by the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court, which stated that the Directorate of Road Services, commonly known as VIO, must stop confiscating vehicles and imposing fines on Nigerians for traffic violations.
While details of this report on the way, it can be recalled that Justice Nkeonye Evelyn Maha delivered the judgment in case FHC/ABJ/CS/1695/2023 on October 2, 2024, stating that the controversial traffic enforcement agency lacked the legal authority to seize vehicles or impose harsh penalties on drivers.
This ruling, which stemmed from a lawsuit filed by rights lawyer Mr. Marshal of Falana and Falana Chambers, significantly reduced the powers of one of the country’s most feared traffic enforcement bodies and provided relief to millions of drivers nationwide.
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The ruling does not extend to the Federal Road Safety Corps, which has been the primary agency for road traffic enforcement in Nigeria for many years.
In her decision, Ms. Maha stated that VIO officers “are not authorized by any law or statute to stop, impound, or confiscate vehicles from motorists, nor to impose fines on them.”
The judge also issued a permanent injunction preventing the VIO and its agents, associates, or anyone acting on its behalf from further infringing on the rights of Nigerians to freedom of movement, the presumption of innocence, and the right to own property without lawful justification.
