The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Directorate of Road Traffic Services (DRTS) yesterday explained that inspection of vehicles and checking of vehicles’ documents was the sole responsibility of the department.
The Public Relation Officer of the FCT DRTS, K. K. Iloduba, made the clarification in response to a statement credited to the Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Commission, Boboye Oyeyemi, when he visited the Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase recently.
Mr. Oyeyemi had said that the Vehicle Inspection Officers (VIO) have no business inspecting vehicles’ papers across the country.
In response to the statement, Mr. Iloduba stressed that “FRSC has no business with vehicle papers on the road, outside the VIO, the only body that has the mandate to demand for vehicle document is the Nigeria Police Force and they are limited to the extent they can do that”.
He denied insinuations that the duties of the two agencies are overlapping, saying their statutory roles are distinct if not for what he called the ‘overzealousness’ of FRSC officials, who have taken it upon themselves to perform the role of VIO.
“You can’t have an accountant waking up one morning and decides to do the work of a lawyer; only in Nigeria that this thing can happen”, he said, adding that FRSC officers could demand for the documents only if they want to book a vehicle.
The DRTS spokesperson added that the department has done well in vehicle inspection, pointing to the first computerized vehicle-testing centre in FCT as a laudable achievement of the department.
“We have come of age with this computerized testing, we are on par with other nations of the world, inspection is our core duty, and we do not take it for granted”, he said.