The Lagos State Government on Monday has defended the
enforcement method of its Special Offences Task Force which favours the removal
of number plates of erring vehicles over clamping down and towing of vehicles.
The government also denied allegations of highhandedness
against officials of the Task Force and those of the Special Offences Tribunal
(Mobile Court), describing the coterie of complainants on social media as
hypocritical and manipulative.
In a statement jointly issued by the State’s Honourable
Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Adeniji Kazeem and the
Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Steve Ayorinde, the State
government said it was within the purview of the traffic law enforcement
officers to identify violators of traffic laws and have them booked and tried
according to the peculiarities of their offences without having to clamp their
tires or tow the vehicles.
The new method being adopted by the Task Force, particularly
for illegal parking of vehicles or obstruction of traffic, according to the
statement, simply involves capturing the offence on video, removing the
number-plate of the erring vehicles and putting a branded sticker on the
windshield of the car to inform the owner/driver of such cars about their
offence and invitation for trial at the Special Offences Mobile Court which may
sitting at any proximate local Government office or at the Special Task office
at Alausa in Ikeja.
It added that the Task Force is authorized under the Lagos
State Road Traffic Law of 2012 as well as the Special Offences Court
established by the Special Offences Court Law Cap S8 Laws of Lagos State 2015.
“The technique that has been adopted by the Task Force is in
line with International Best Practices which prefers issuance of tickets to
erring offenders over clamp downs or towing of vehicles that do not only cost
both the government and erring drivers money but also clogs public spaces where
such vehicles would have been kept,” the statement said.
It added that once the offender honours the invitation for
trial, where a magistrate presides over the proceedings, the offender is
usually presented with a video evidence of the offence before he or she is
charged. A fine or a community service is then imposed if the offender pleads
guilty. But if the offender chooses to put up a defence and is without a
defence counsel, he or she will be entitled to the services of a lawyer from
the Office of the Public Defender at no cost.
The statement stresses that the essence of this exercise is
not to engage in unwholesome revenue drive as being erroneously peddled in
certain quarters but to deter violations of the traffic laws “which is why
community service is often preferred for the offenders so that they can become
advocates of the laws which seek to bring sanity to Lagos State roads and
instill a sense of responsibility in drivers and car owners, particularly the
elites who think they are above the law.”
The statement said while the State government would not
relent in its vaunted method of adequately sensitizing the public before
embarking on enforcements, it added that ignorance is not an excuse in law and
perceived inadequacies in car park provisions by frequently used establishments
like banks, malls and eateries does not give car owners an excuse to park on
the kerb or main roads thereby obstructing traffic.
For the avoidance of doubt, the statement said parking on
the kerb or walkways or outside the premises where the driver has come to
transact business in a manner that either obstructs traffic or constitutes
illegal use of public space is a violation of the law and could attract a fine
of Twenty thousand Naira (N20, 000) or a community service after a documentary
evidence has been presented to the offender.
According to the statement, “Section One of the Special
Offences Court Law Cap S8 Laws of Lagos State 2015 stipulates that the Court
could sit at any convenient place close to the scene of the commission of any
offence triable by the court. Section Two of the same law allows the Court to
sit on Mondays to Saturday, whilst Section 3(1) same law states that the Court
has jurisdiction over offences listed in Schedule 1 to this Law.
“A cursory look at the offences listed in the said Schedule
1, reveals that Road Traffic Offences as contained in the Lagos State Road
Traffic Law Cap R5, Laws of Lagos State 2015 and Environmental Offences as
provided for in the Schedule to the Environmental Sanitation Enforcement Agency
Law, Cap E5, Laws of Lagos State 2015 are under the jurisdiction of the Mobile
Courts.”
The state government explained that “it should be noted that
most banks make provision for parking within their premises or designated car
parks outside their premises where customers are expected to make use of same
and not to cause obstruction to human or vehicular movement.
“There is no way a responsible and responsive government
would sit idly by and watch citizens groan under the hardship of road
congestion caused by infractions of a few recalcitrant drivers or those who
simply think that they can blackmail the government into submission while being
economical with the truth whenever government wields the big stick against such
infractions.
“Parking on the road while using the ATM is a clear traffic
transgression that is similar to parking on the yellow lines abroad. We wish to
implore our law-abiding citizens to desist from such conducts that run foul of
the law and which invariably attracts consequences and discomfort once the law
is enforced.”
The Statement added that the Akinwunmi Ambode-led
administration appreciates the exponential growth that the state is currently
facing, particularly in the area of traffic which is why the government has
been introducing several pro-people measures like the massive injection of the
Bus Rapid Transport in order to manage the situation better.
It added that while it may take a while to get used to the
number-plate removal technique of the Task Force, just like it did when
compulsory use of seat belts was introduced or when commercial motorcycles and
street hawking were banned on the highways, it says the government is happy
that a large section of the public is applauding the method that retains the
liberty of traffic offenders even when they have transgressed. It assured that
the Lagos State government would continue to show compassion and drive
enforcement through technology while ensuring that the interest of the larger
society is protected at all times.
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