Job Osazuwa
In the past, registering a new vehicle and processing the particulars in Lagos State was a seamless exercise. But at the moment, the situation has been altered drastically.
In those days, in a matter of days, all vehicle particulars, including the registration number for a car and documents like vehicle licence, insurance certificate and others would be ready. It was no big deal for anybody applying for it. No one needed to know anyone who knew another person who was connected to a top officer at the Motor Vehicle Administration Agency or at the local government secretariat before one could be issued a number plate.
Not anymore. Now, the narrative has changed. Registering a car is now a laborious process that crawls for as long as four months in Lagos. For many Lagos residents, getting a new vehicle registered is a tiring and frustrating venture. It has become a herculean task, and those saddled with the responsibility cannot even tell when the process would become seamless again.
The authorities insist that the number plates are unavailable. Those who have bought cars and are eager to launch them on the road as fast as possible have had to wait endlessly. As they wait, they are left to gnash their teeth with no definite explanation from any government official on why they have to wait for that long.
Those affected and other residents of the state have unanimously condemned the slow pace and blamed government for making life difficult for the people.
When the reporter contacted an official of Amuwo Odofin Local Government Area (LGA) in Lagos, who pleaded anonymity, he said vehicle numbers could not be allocated in the state at the moment as there was acute scarcity of the items. According to him, Lagos has been facing the scarcity since the middle of last year.
The development has led many people to go to other states to register their vehicles. They assert that there is no point waiting for eternity for Lagos registration numbers when the ones obtained from other states serve exactly the same purpose and can be used anywhere in the country.
But there are some new car owners who believe that it is either Lagos vehicle number or none. This category of people believe that using a vehicle that carries other state’s number would expose them to incessant harassment in the hands of security agents and paramilitary personnel who engage in day-to-day checks.
The council worker said: “As I speak to you, there is no number plate in Lagos. Since June last year, they have been telling us that the plates would soon arrive but all to no avail. They might tell us it will be available this week, then they promise the following week, and so on. Up till now, we are still waiting.
“A similar thing happened some years ago but that one didn’t last for this long so the gap didn’t show much. The problem is only in Lagos as far as I know. If you want Ogun State number today, I can assist you to get it and it will be ready in a few days. Apart from Ogun, other states are also available, which you can get very fast.
“Cars that used to be registered for between N35,000 and N40,000 depending on who is handling the job, will now cost N45,000 or more, as we heard. But it has not been announced officially.”
When asked what could be responsible for the scarcity, he said those in charge had not been forthcoming with explanations. He said the only thing those in authority had been saying was that there would still be abundant supply and the problem would soon be over. While expressing doubts over the assurance, he said that was the same promise that had been on offer since the crisis started.
It was learnt that the situation was already creating room for sharp practices among some dubious state officials who are into processing of motor particulars and number plates. Some of them, it was alleged, now collect as much as double of the original amount from clients with the promise that they would help with the registration.
Daily Sun gathered that the few Lagos registration numbers that were available have been hoarded and reserved for the highest bidders.
“Some persons still get it but it is very difficult and also very expensive,” another source at the council secretariat said.
Reacting to the unpalatable development, a Lagos resident, a teacher in a private secondary school, Mr. Ademola Ogundipe, said: “It is shameful that almost everything is wrong with our system. This is a document that is not given out for free but people have to be subjected to torture before getting it. Having struggled for months or years to save the money to buy a car, then you will begin to panic over whether you will get a number plate or not. If it is not scarcity of fuel today, it will be something else tomorrow.
“Everyone knows that the population of Lagos keeps increasing. And also that the volume of trade keeps rising in the state. Therefore, it will be expected that the possibility of people buying more vehicles here will be far higher than many other states put together. So, there is nothing stopping those in charge to be proactive.
“We take so many things for granted in this part of the world. Do we still have to blame President Muhammadu Buhari or the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, for this lapse? This should not be accepted in this age. If those handling the production of the plates cannot meet up with the demand in Lagos, they should quit and allow those who are willing to come in. In my submission, there should not be any reason or excuse why there should be scarcity of plate number.”
There are concerns that the Lagos State government has already perfected plans to increase the price of all number plates.
Responding to the speculation, the Lagos State government recently came out to debunk the rumours of increase in the cost of processing vehicle particulars and application for number plates, saying the rates remained the same across the state.
In the statement signed by the state’s Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Kehinde Bamigbetan, government maintained that the clarification became necessary in response to enquiries by members of the public who were genuinely concerned about the rumours of increases in charges relating to the motor vehicle administration.
Bamigbetan challenged anyone with evidence of any increase in motor registration rates from any of the official centres managed by the Lagos State Motor Vehicle Administration Authority (MVAA) to come forward and report to the agency or the Ministry of Transportation.
According to him: “Although the cost of maintaining the roads and expanding infrastructure, which eases the operations of vehicles is enormous, the Lagos State government shall continue to bear the burden of keeping the roads motorable and safe for all users.”
The public affairs officer, Lagos State Ministry of Transport, Mrs. Bolanle Ogunlola, declined comments when the reporter spoke with her on the telephone. She explained that she was not in a position to comment on the scarcity or delay in issuing number plates.
Efforts to get the response of the general manager, MVAA, on the issue were unfruitful.
A former worker at the Ministry of Transportation, who pleaded not to be named, said the freezing of the bank accounts of Lagos State Government Number Plate Production Authority (LSGNPPA) in March last year by the Federal High Court in Lagos over an alleged N3 billion fraud might have contributed to the problem.
Justice Mohammed Idris had given the order to freeze the account following an ex parte application by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). He said the account would remain frozen pending the conclusion of EFCC’s investigation into the alleged N3 billion fraud.
The order affected 32 bank accounts of companies allegedly used to divert the N3 billion from LSGNPPA.
The EFCC investigator, Mr. Olamide Sadiq, who deposed to an affidavit in support, said the probe into the alleged fraud was informed by intelligence received sometime in 2017 by the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit.