ABUJA – The Directorate of Road Traffic Services (VIO) has announced it will appeal to the Supreme Court after the Court of Appeal on Thursday upheld a landmark ruling that permanently bars its officers from stopping vehicles, impounding cars, or imposing fines on motorists in the Federal Capital Territory.
A three-member panel of the appellate court unanimously dismissed VIO’s challenge against an October 2024 Federal High Court judgment, describing the agency’s roadside enforcement practices as “unlawful, oppressive and unconstitutional.”
The original suit was filed by Abuja-based lawyer Abubakar Marshal, who dragged VIO to court after officers seized his car in Jabi in December 2023. The High Court had awarded him N2.5 million damages and issued a perpetual injunction against VIO, the FCT Minister, and the Transport Secretary.
Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Oyejoju Oyewumi ruled that no law empowers VIO officers to act as mobile courts on the highways, stressing that only properly constituted courts can impose fines or confiscate property.
Reacting to the verdict, acting VIO Director Deborah Osho told NewsFocus: “We are heading to the Supreme Court. If we cannot enforce traffic laws on the road, there will be chaos. Abuja drivers already feel they are above the law.”
Motorists and rights groups have hailed the decision as a major victory. “This ends years of extortion on our roads,” said commuter rights activist Comrade Yusuf Abdul. “VIO should limit itself to vehicle inspection at designated centres as the law intended.”
Legal experts say the ruling currently applies only to the FCT but could set a precedent for the entire country if upheld by the Supreme Court.
For now, VIO officers in Abuja have been directed to stand down from roadside operations pending the final outcome of the case.
