Extortion: Lagos suspends operation of Committee on Removal of Abandoned Vehicles

The Lagos State Government has once again placed an indefinite suspension on the entire ad-hoc teams of the Committee on Removal of Abandoned Vehicles (RAVC) operating in the 20 Local Governments (LGs) and 37 Local Council Development Area (LCDAs) in Lagos State with immediate effect.

The suspension which was contained in a directive issued to the Commissioner for Transportation Dr. Frederic Oladeinde by the Governor of Lagos State on Friday was as a result of several complaints of extortion and harassment of members of the public by RAVC which is causing embarrassment to the State Government despite several reviews conducted on the operational guidelines of the team.

The directive warned that any ad-hoc team found operating after this notice will be handed over to the Law Enforcement Agencies for trial and prosecution in accordance with the Law of the State as captured in the Traffic Sector Reform Law (TSRL) 2018.

The directive while requesting the general public to take note of the order also advise abandoned vehicles owners which hitherto pose as environmental nuisances, security and traffic impediment to remove them from the roads as this directive is not an excuse for negligence of the Traffic Laws of the State.

It would be recalled that Removal of Abandoned Vehicles Committee, (RAVC) earlier suspension was lifted on 30th December, 2021 in view of several appraisal and review of the operational guidelines of the team by the State Government.

The Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO) had in a recent letter addressed to the Lagos State Governor, accused the committee of harassment and illegal towing of trucks which are always recovered after the payment of unreceipted charges ranging from N100,000 to N200,000.