The Directorate of Road Traffic Services (VIO) has reached a legal dead end in its bid to stop and impound vehicles on Abuja roads.
The Court of Appeal in Abuja has firmly upheld a landmark judgment stripping the agency of these enforcement powers.
In a decisive ruling on Thursday, a three-member panel of the appellate court dismissed the VIO’s appeal, affirming the October 4, 2024, judgment of the Federal High Court in Abuja.
That earlier ruling had explicitly barred the VIO from “further stopping, impounding, or confiscating vehicles on the road and imposing fines on motorists.”
Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Oyejoju Oyebiola Oyewumi held that the VIO’s appeal was entirely without merit.
The court resolved all three issues identified for determination against the appellant.
The legal victory was secured by rights activist and public interest attorney, Abubakar Marshal, who was the respondent in the appeal. In a significant sting, the Appeal Court also awarded a cost of N1 million against the Directorate of Road Traffic Services, payable to Marshal.
This judgment solidifies a major shift in traffic enforcement in the Federal Capital Territory, confining the VIO’s statutory functions to matters of vehicle registration and administration, and permanently barring it from its once-common practice of roadside stops, seizures, and on-the-spot fines.
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