
A Federal High Court in Abuja has ruled that the Vehicle Inspection Office (VIO), officially known as the Directorate of Road Traffic Services (DTRS), does not have the legal authority to stop vehicles, seize them, or fine motorists. The judgment, delivered by Justice Nkeonye Evelyn Maha in case FHC/ABJ/CS/1695/2023, clarified that no existing law grants the VIO such powers.
The ruling came after a lawsuit filed by human rights lawyer Abubakar Marshal, who argued that these actions by the DTRS violated motorists’ fundamental rights, including freedom of movement and the presumption of innocence, as guaranteed by the Nigerian Constitution and the African Charter on Human Rights.
The court also issued a permanent injunction preventing the DTRS and its officers from continuing these practices, emphasizing that they are unlawful, oppressive, and an infringement on the rights of Nigerian motorists.