Candid Talk on Number Plate – THISDAYLIVE

Road Safety

Are you aware of the recent ban on the use of vehicles with unregistered or concealed number plates? Do you know that the Inspector General of Police, Olatunji Disa, placed the ban? Do you know that he has ordered nationwide operations targeting vehicles without valid number plates.

Valid number plates according to his order are in line with the National Road Traffic Regulations which lists obscured, concealed, defaced or altered registration numbers as well as broken number plate as infractions. This is in addition to the infraction of driving vehicles without any number plate at all.

Since his pronouncement meant to strengthen security, I have followed public reactions trailing the ban. Some have questioned the number of times such a ban has been placed. Others have asked what the penalty is for politicians and senior government officials who flout these provisions daily even in the Federal Capital Territory.

Another commentator described the ban as apt, stressing that driving without a number plate is a sign of the dysfunctionality of our society. He noted that those who indulge in this act must have shady deals to [JI1] conceal which is the trust of the Police pronouncement.

I am not throwing my hat into these reactions which are expected. My focus is to shed light on the rationale behind such pronouncements which has been addressed several times on this page especially in the face of rising insecurity and safety concerns which should be the concern of every citizen as we collectively battle to promote a safer environment for all.

Today’s dish is nothing new. It’s an old dish once shared on this same page for the interest of those who missed it or those who may not know the criminal implications of driving without a registered number plate which is the concern of the Police authorities.

For the records, the road is central in combating crime. They are the main access criminals use for kidnapping, terrorism, movement of stolen goods or drugs among other criminal activities. This is why all vehicles whether in Nigeria or anywhere in the world are required by law to carry number plates as key identifiers.

In developed climes, and a state such as Lagos, automated enforcement systems are the technology tools that are deployed to monitor, detect and penalize traffic infractions.  They include automatic number plate recognition, red-light cameras, AI-Powered distracted driving cameras, speed tracking hardware, smart software and backend systems

Unfortunately, these vital tools necessary in modern day policing of our roads are absent except for Lagos State which has blazed the trail in traffic management. Their absence hinders tracking suspects, stolen vehicles and movements as well as traffic infractions.

The road is therefore, not just a path of travel, but a frontline in the battle for safety and security against all crimes. I have written several times under captions such as ‘Rotational Number Plates’, ‘The criminality of number plates’, and ‘Still on number plates as well as Taming Number Plate Criminality.

I am compelled by the recent development to again share my last writeup on this safety and security issue which highlighted the Federal Road Safety Corps’ continued battle to curtail the menace which has also caught the attention of the Police hierarchy. Other security Agencies whose mandate requires some presence on the road should also be interested.

I recall a viral video of rotational number plates circulated on social media platforms about a year or so ago, by concerned citizens appealing to security Agencies to step up and nip the trend. I make bold to say that the Federal Road Safety Corps has consistently clamped down on violators of this infraction but need infrastructure backbone to perfect its enforcement drive

This is why governments at all levels whose responsibility the protection of citizens lies, need to put the needed infrastructure to ease enforcement. The needed infrastructures such as currently exist in Lagos State will shift focus from analogue enforcement to fully driven technology enforcement. Apart from deterring culprits, this upgrade will drive down avoidable road traffic crashes even among chronic deviants, including the high and mighty

For our information, number plate infraction is illegal. It is also criminal. According to my legal tutor, obscuring a number plate or driving a vehicle without any, amounts to perverting justice. When I wrote on this same topic, I said to you that a number plate identifies a vehicle and its owner.

Whether in developed countries or climes such as Nigeria, the number plates on each vehicle must show the correct registration number. It is therefore illegal for you to rearrange letters or numbers, or alter them, making them hard to read and this is the concern of the Police leadership as they battle insecurity in the country.

Such an act which is deemed criminal could result in a fine of up to £1,000, in the case of the United Kingdom and this will cause your vehicle to fail the Ministry of Transport (MOT) test. In Nigeria, number plate violation is just N3,000, which is why I hope a review will jerk up the cost to deter defaulters.

Rotational number plate according to the FRSC is illegal in Nigeria. It is also illegal in other parts of the globe. My findings show that using a rotating plate or ‘’stealth’’ frame to obscure a number plate to avoid fines or parking fees is ‘’tantamount to perverting the course of justice’’, according to a lawyer.

I know that FRSC does not produce rotational number plates neither is such a number plate authorized by the Corps or the National Road Traffic Regulations. Therefore, like a commentator noted, such acts are only intended for sinister criminal motives.  The FRSC once clarified that the Agency does not produce a number plate with such double features, stressing that only one number can be assigned to one vehicle and its owner at the same time. 

Rotational number plates which carry more than one number, are illegal acts committed by motorists. But while we shed light on the illegality of rotational number plates and other number plate infractions cited earlier, it is imperative to clarify the position of the law concerning the indiscriminate removal of vehicle number plates by law enforcement agents which should also form the focus of this clampdown.

A classmate and friend once called to express his frustration on the improper action of a security operatives who used a screwdriver to unscrew his vehicle number plates, and then asked him to report to the office the next day. A second caller who claimed to reside in the Federal Capital Territory was not as lucky as his rear vehicle number plate was forcefully removed with bare hands.

The action of the security operatives in the two cases cited are criminal and not backed by any law in the land. It is similar to stripping/tearing off a female road users’ dress and disregarding her right to her privacy, all in the name of enforcing the law.

So, what does the law say? For emphasis and clarity, it is illegal for any law enforcement operative no matter the color of his uniform or the sophistication of his arms to engage in the removal/confiscation of number plates from a vehicle and I do hope that road users would, according to my learned friend, take judicial notice of the clarification.

For appropriate guidance, the following provisions of the law are instructive: Section 10(4)(h) of the FRSC (Establishment) Act, 2007 states: that it’s an offence to be on the road without a valid vehicle license or identification mark being displayed. Similarly, Section 10(4)(s) of the Act makes failure to display number plates on vehicles an offense.

The National Road Traffic Regulations (NRTR) 2012 also provide as follows: Section 36(NRTR) 2012 makes it mandatory for all private and commercial vehicles to have number plates which shall be fixed on them in a manner as not to be easily detachable. Failure to comply amounts to a contravention of the law. No section of the Regulations permits any operative to remove a vehicles’ number plate. However, depending on the infraction that vehicle can be towed.