The Court of Appeal in Abuja has upheld a Federal High Court ruling from October 4, 2024, restraining the Directorate of Road Traffic Services (VIO) from stopping, impounding, or confiscating vehicles on the roads, as well as from imposing fines on motorists.
The decision was delivered on Thursday by a three-member panel of the appellate court, which dismissed all three issues raised by the Directorate of Road Traffic Services in its appeal.
Justice Oyejoju Oyebiola Oyewumi, who delivered the lead judgment, ruled that the appeal “was without merit.”
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She also ordered the appellant to pay N1 million in costs to the respondent, human rights activist and public interest lawyer Abubakar Marshal.
The judgment reinforces the limitation on VIO’s authority over road users and is seen as a landmark affirmation of motorists’ rights in Nigeria.
Details later …
