The court of appeal in Abuja on Thursday upheld a federal high court judgement barring the directorate of road traffic services (DRTS), also known as the vehicle inspection office (VIO), from stopping motorists, impounding vehicles, or imposing fines on road users.
Last year, Evelyn Maha, the presiding judge, in a suit filed by human rights lawyer Marshal Abubakar, ruled that the VIO, which operates under the control of the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), has no legal authority to stop or impound vehicles and to fine drivers.
In a unanimous decision on Thursday, a three-member panel of the court dismissed the VIO’s appeal for lacking merit, affirming the earlier ruling by Maha.
The court described the actions of the VIO as oppressive and unlawful and issued a perpetual injunction restraining the directorate and its agents from further violations of motorists’ rights to freedom of movement, presumption of innocence, and ownership of property.
According to the ruling, only a court of competent jurisdiction could impose sanctions or fines, noting that the respondents violated the applicant’s constitutional rights under section 42 of the 1999 Constitution and article 14 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.
The court also said the respondents had no statutory powers to impound vehicles or impose fines, adding that such actions breached motorists’ rights to a fair hearing and freedom of movement under various sections of the constitution and provisions of the African Charter.
Marshal, represented by a legal team led by Femi Falana, human rights lawyer and senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN), had sought N500 million in damages and an apology in three national newspapers from the defendants.
The court awarded N2.5 million in damages instead.
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