Appeal Court Upholds Ruling Restricting VIO From Stopping or Impounding Vehicles

By Ekanem ASUQUO 

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has upheld a Federal High Court judgment that barred the Directorate of Road Traffic Services, popularly known as VIO, from stopping vehicles, impounding them, or imposing fines on motorists.

In a unanimous decision, a three-member panel of the appellate court dismissed the appeal filed by the Directorate of Road Traffic Services, ruling that the agency lacked the legal authority to carry out such actions.

Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Oyejoju Oyewumi held that the appeal was without merit and affirmed the earlier decision that no existing law empowers the VIO to stop or confiscate vehicles on Nigerian roads. The court also awarded a cost of N1 million against the appellant in favour of the respondent, human rights activist and public interest lawyer, Abubakar Marshal.

Justice Nkeonye Maha of the Federal High Court had earlier ruled that the VIO acted outside its mandate when its officials forcefully stopped Marshal’s vehicle in the Jabi District of Abuja on December 12, 2023. Marshal told the court that his vehicle was seized without lawful justification, prompting him to file a fundamental rights enforcement suit.

Justice Maha declared the VIO’s actions wrongful, oppressive, unlawful, and a violation of Marshal’s rights. She restrained the agency and its agents from stopping motorists, impounding vehicles, or imposing fines, stating that such actions contravened the law.

The Court of Appeal’s affirmation strengthens the precedent that only agencies expressly empowered by law may carry out road enforcement duties, reinforcing motorists’ protection against unlawful vehicle confiscation.