The Federal Capital Territory Administration has stepped up its crackdown on illegal transport operators in Abuja, seizing 40 vehicles, 52 motorcycles, and four tricycles linked to traffic offences and criminal activities, particularly the notorious “one chance” robberies.
Mandate Secretary of the FCT Transport Secretariat, Barr. Chinedu Elechi, said the joint enforcement operation was conducted by a multi-agency task force that included the police, civil defence, and other security outfits.
According to him, while impounded motorcycles would be destroyed, vehicles would go through mobile court proceedings before any decisions on their disposal.
“We don’t just impound; the owners will face a mobile court. The bikes will be crushed, but everything happens after the court order,” Elechi stated during an inspection of the confiscated vehicles at the Wuye command of the Directorate of Road Traffic Services (DRTS).
He stressed that the clampdown would remain continuous to deter offenders.
“If people keep using motorcycles and unpainted vehicles illegally, we too cannot be tired of enforcement. It is an FCT task, and we will keep doing it,” he said.
Elechi also linked the exercise to the fight against insecurity in the city, pointing out that unpainted taxis are a major tool for “one chance” criminals.
“There has to be sanity. One of the major security breaches comes from unpainted vehicles. It hardly happens with painted taxis,” he added.
To sanitize Abuja’s transport system, the Secretary revealed plans to register all commercial drivers and assign identification numbers to taxis.
“If you want to operate as a commercial driver in Abuja, your vehicle must be painted and registered with a side number. Using personal cars for transport is illegal and that is how one chance thrives,” he warned.
On the recently commissioned bus terminals, Elechi explained that they would become operational after the completion of procurement processes with private investors under a public-private partnership model.
Acting Director of DRTS, Deborah Osho, clarified that the impounded vehicles were nabbed for various traffic offences, with unpainted commercial taxis being the most common.
“These tricycles and motorcycles are mostly linked to criminal activities like bag snatching and traffic violations. That’s why they were taken off the roads,” Osho said.
