Ambode talks tough: "Violators of traffic rules in Lagos will continue to see hell"

on if you are one of those who park carelessly. Lagos government is now saying, "if you do anyhow, you will see anyhow". Lol. Read on

The Lagos State Government on Monday 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 Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Adeniji Kazeem, and the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, 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 tyres 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 sit at any proximate local Government office or at the Special Task office at Alausa in Ikeja.

For the avoidance of doubt, the statement said

"parking on the kerb or walkways or outside the premises where the driver comes 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.”

“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.”