FCTA Vows Tough Crackdown On Traffic Offenders, Illegal Transport Operators

ABUJA — The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has reaffirmed its authority to enforce traffic regulations, warning motorists, transport operators and touts that violators will face stiff sanctions under existing laws.

The Mandate Secretary of the FCTA Transportation Secretariat, Chinedum Elechi, gave the warning during a press briefing in Abuja on Thursday, dismissing reports that a recent court judgment had stripped the Department of Road Transport Services (DRTS) of its powers to impound vehicles or sanction traffic offenders.

Elechi explained that while the court examined the legal status of the DRTS as a department, the constitutional authority to enforce transportation laws rests with the FCTA as a corporate entity under the leadership of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.

He cautioned motorists against exploiting misconceptions arising from the judgment, stressing that traffic enforcement in the FCT is carried out through a joint “Command and Control” task force comprising the DRTS, Nigeria Police Force, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Department of State Services (DSS), Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB), the FCT Security Department and other security agencies.

According to him, the administration remains committed to maintaining order on Abuja’s roads and will intensify enforcement against traffic offenders, illegal transport operators, touts and operators of unauthorised motor parks.

Elechi announced that the FCTA would deploy mobile courts to prosecute offenders, impound vehicles, seal illegal premises and, where authorised by the courts, confiscate and crush seized vehicles.

He said previous appeals to transport operators to comply with regulations had been misinterpreted as weakness, adding that the administration would now adopt stricter enforcement measures.

The mandate secretary also stated that many transport groups operating within the FCT lacked valid operational licences despite being regarded as organised unions. He noted that with the development of designated bus terminals, operators would no longer be allowed to use unauthorised locations such as Wuse and Utako as loading points.

Highlighting previous enforcement efforts, Elechi disclosed that the Transportation Secretariat had earlier impounded more than 100 vehicles but released them on compassionate grounds. He, however, warned that similar leniency would no longer be extended.

He cited the Federal Capital Territory Establishment Law Dissolution Order No. 1 of 2004 and the FCT Road Transport Regulations 2023 as the legal framework empowering the administration to impound vehicles, seal premises, establish mobile courts and prosecute offenders.

Elechi added that operating commercial transport services without a licence attracts penalties, including imprisonment, and assured residents that the FCTA would strictly enforce the law to restore sanity to Abuja’s transportation system.