Connect with us

Politics

Is FRSC’s New Vehicle Plate Numbers, Drivers’ Licence Regime Necessary?

Published

on

In the last couple of weeks, the Federal Road Safety Commission and the Federal Inland Revenue Service have stoutly defended the proposal for a new plate number and driver’s licence regime, they claim to be more customised and would help fight crime while racking in huge revenue to government coffers. Our staff writer, Calista Ezeaku and Photographer, Prince Dele Obinna went to the streets to speak with stakeholders. Their responses.

 

Chief Eugene Azuobi, Transporter/Cement Dealer.

It is not necessary. But I thank God for the effort the National Assembly is making to stop it. The plate number we are using now is  okay. The driver’s licence we are using is also okay. So I don’t see the essence of changing from this one to another. Again, the money they pegged the new one is very exorbitant, some people cannot afford it. It is not everybody that has a car  can afford the new plate number. So, it is not necessary at all. We should continue with the existing one.

Again, FRSC is not a revenue collector. So, they are not supposed to be changing plate numbers and licences every time, just to make money. So, they should leave the old one.

 

Mr George Nsien Samuel, Business man.

To me, it is very  necessary. Government allowed FRSC to come up with the idea of changing the plate numbers and driver’s licence. They (government) accepted it, so why trying to stop it now? The Road Safety Corp Marshal, Osita Chidoka, took the new plate number to the president, he accepted it. It was televised.

He took it to the Senate president and the speaker of House of Representatives. They accepted it. When the FRSC started selling it, for instance, I have bought it. They want to stop it after allowing people to spend so much to acquire the two. So, the point is that the new plate numbers and driver’s licence are now in circulation, let it continue.

I agree that the cost of the new one is on the high side. I spent about N45,000 to get this new plate number when I bought my car. Of course, I had a plate number and I asked them (FRSC), if I could return the old plate number to them so that I could get the new one at a reduced price but it was not done that way. So, the cost is high but it is nice. I even like this new one more than the old one. The new one portrays the image of Nigeria more.

 

Prince Collins Chima, Driver.

For me, I will suggest that the old vehicles, already using the old plate numbers should continue with them.  The new plate numbers should be for new vehicles coming into the country. It is of no use condemning the old plate numbers and making it mandatory that everybody should buy the new one. This is because if you look at the old and the new plate numbers, there is no difference, apart from the map of Nigeria on the new one.

Mr Emma Okoli, Printer.

Yes, I have heard of the FRSC’s proposal concerning the plate numbers and driver’s licence, and I feel that it’s just too exorbitant. So, I am thinking that the price for the new plate numbers should be N5,000.00, and anybody buying a plate number for a new car should pay higher while somebody who wants to renew an old one should pay less.

So, I’m not really against the new plate numbers because of the data involved. They said that they are going to customize it so that a plate number goes with the name of the car owner and I think that is okay. For security reasons and for ease of accessing data, it is okay. Although I doubt if that will be achievable in Nigeria because of the level of corruption and insincerity.So, that’s why I am afraid if it will work. We want to compare ourselves with countries abroad yes abroad it works, but in Nigeria, not everything works the way it is supposed to work. If they really want to keep a data base, they have to have another information base, where they can fall back on, assuming it gets lost in the system.

 

Mr Femi Kolawole, Seaman

This new plate number issue is a distraction to the country. The country had a plate number with five alphabets. After that, they introduced another new plate number with three alphabets. By the time those  numbers finished, they went back to the old plate numbers again. Now, they have brought another new one. Why is the country coming up with different plate numbers all the time. So, I feel that this is no difference between the new  and the old plate numbers. It’s a disturbance, it’s a stress. Somebody cannot be buying one plate number three times for one car. It is even a criminal act for one vehicle to have more than three plate numbers.

 

Mrs Emi Jameson, Civil Servant.

It’s not necessary. I don’t think that will solve our problem in Nigeria. We have a major problem, not that. So, there’s no need changing the plate numbers or driver’s licence. There had been several drivers’ licences. So, I don’t think the continuous change will solve any problem. It’s not necessary. It’s just to make the masses to spend. If not I don’t see any reason for that.

All the strategies they have been using to check crime, how many criminals have they tracked down. I don’t think a new plate number will help in checking crime. We’ve been hearing that but I don’t think that will be the solution to our problem. They should allow us to use the old ones we’ve been using. There is no need for a change. It’s not necessary.

Continue Reading

Politics

Reps Constitution Review Committee Holds Zonal Hearing For Rivers, C’River, Akwa Ibom In Calabar

Published

on

In a renewed effort to deepen Nigeria’s constitutional democracy, the House of Representatives Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution has announced the commencement of its Zonal and National Public Hearings across the country.

A press statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary to the Cross River State Governor, Mr Linus Obogo, disclosed that the Calabar Centre — designated as Centre B — will host representatives and stakeholders from Cross River, Rivers, and Akwa Ibom States.

The public hearing is scheduled to take place on Saturday, July 19, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. at the Transcorp (Metropolitan) Hotel, Calabar.

The initiative, according to the statement, is designed to promote inclusive dialogue and capture the aspirations of Nigerians from all regions.

It aims to serve as a platform for citizens to contribute meaningfully to the ongoing national efforts to refine and strengthen the country’s legal and institutional frameworks.

“Citizens, civil society groups, professional bodies, traditional rulers, and other interest blocs are invited to participate in this landmark engagement aimed at advancing a more just, equitable, and responsive Nigerian Constitution,” the statement read.

The hearing forms part of the broader review process of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), and is seen as a strategic move toward fostering national unity and addressing structural legal issues within the federation.

 

Continue Reading

Politics

Tinubu’s Contribution To Buhari’s Presidency Marginal – Ex-SGF

Published

on

Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr Boss Mustapha, has stirred fresh political controversy by dismissing claims that President Bola Tinubu was highly instrumental to former President Muhammadu Buhari’s emergence in 2015 after the merger of political parties that formed the All Progressives Congress (APC).

For the first time since 2022, when then-presidential aspirant Alhaji Bola Tinubu declared he made former President Buhari Nigeria’s President in 2015, Mr Mustapha dismissed the claims, stressing that the merger only contributed about three million votes in addition to Buhari’s existing 12 million votes in the North.

He insisted that former President Buhari’s integrity, national stature, and disciplined messaging were central to the breakthrough, not the three million votes from the merging parties, which he described as insignificant.

Speaking on the role of the merging parties, particularly President Tinubu, the leader of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Mr Mustapha, who was the keynote speaker at the launch of the book ‘According to the President: Lessons from a Presidential Spokesman’s Experience’ authored by Mallam Garba Shehu, described the impact of the votes from other merging parties as very insignificant.

In attendance were former Head of State Yakubu Gowon, chair of the event; immediate past Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; SGF George Akume, who represented President Tinubu; PDP’s 2023 presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar; former Chief of Staff to Buhari Ibrahim Gambari; elder statesman Babagana Kingibe; former governors Nasir El-Rufai (Kaduna), Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti), Chris Ngige (Anambra), Rauf Aregbesola (Osun), Raji Babatunde Fashola (Lagos); former ministers Solomon Dalung and Sunday Dare; former Army Chief Tukur Buratai, and Bayo Onanuga, President Tinubu’s spokesman, among others.

According to Mr Mustapha, “I do not intend to stir up any controversy. The merger in 2013 was midwifed to create a Buhari presidency. Let us look at the statistics. In the 2003 election, it was the Obasanjo-Buhari presidential contest where Buhari recorded 12.7 million votes. In 2007, it came to 6.6 million, and it went back to 12.2 million in 2011.

“When we were conceptualising the merger, what would give us a headstart? Obviously, it was at the back of our consciousness that the merger with the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), though it had only one state, the ACN had six states, ANPP three states, and when you sum up the total votes that we had as the presidency in 2015, the aggregate of the total votes was 15.4 million.

“So, basically, what we brought to the table after the merger outside the Buhari 12.5 million votes was three million. Before turning to that presidency, it is important to recognise the former President’s role in reshaping Nigeria’s political trajectory.

“In early 2013, as the leader of the CPC, Buhari formally requested and supported the creation of a CPC merger committee, part of a broader coalition-building process that brought together the ACN, ANPP, APGA faction, and elements of the ruling party through the breakaway ‘new PDP’ group. His endorsement and participation, along with other party leaders such as President Tinubu and Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, lent credibility and direction to the merger, helping to unify disparate party factions under the banner of the APC. That coalition-building paved the way for the first democratic defeat of an incumbent ruling party in Nigeria’s history.

“President Buhari’s integrity, national stature, and disciplined messaging were central to that breakthrough. No account of President Buhari’s tenure would be complete without acknowledging the extended periods he spent on medical leave. These moments, while politically delicate, were also telling of his leadership philosophy and personality,” he said.

In his remarks, President Tinubu promised to build on the legacies of former President Buhari, stressing that “nation-building is a relay. The efforts of one administration lay the foundation for the next.

“In this regard, I acknowledge the efforts of my predecessor, President Buhari, and assure all Nigerians that the reform-oriented path he initiated will be consolidated and strengthened under this administration. Our Renewed Hope Agenda is inspired by the desire to build a resilient, just, and inclusive Nigeria—a nation that delivers dividends of democracy to all its citizens”.

Continue Reading

Politics

Your Lies Chasing Investors From Nigeria, Omokri Slams Obi

Published

on

Former Presidential aide, Mr Reno Omokri, has accused Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi, of spreading false information about Nigeria’s debt profile, claiming it is deterring foreign investors from the country.

Speaking during an appearance on live television on Wednesday, Mr Omokri alleged that Mr Obi’s statements were misleading and damaging to the country’s economic prospects.

Mr Omokri said some investors currently operating in Nigeria were considering exiting the market due to Mr Obi’s remarks.

“That is not true. He doesn’t rile me up. I rile him up. The reason why I came here is because I’m a patriot. Peter Obi lied. You know, foreign direct investors are watching your programme, who are making investment decisions not to come to Nigeria. There are foreign investors in Nigeria that are making investment decisions to leave Nigeria because of the lie he told.

“One of the lies he told is that President Tinubu has borrowed more than the administrations of Yar’Adua, Jonathan, Buhari. That is a blatant lie”, Mr Omokri said.

To buttress his claims, Mr Omokri referenced figures from the Debt Management Office (DMO), maintaining that President Tinubu had actually reduced Nigeria’s external debt burden since assuming office.

“I have here with me data from the Debt Management Office, and Nigerians who are watching can go to DMO.com and search Debt Management Office, Nigeria State of Indebtedness 2015.

“As of 2015, Nigeria was owing a total of $63 billion. When Buhari was leaving office, Nigeria was owing $113 billion. Today, from the DMO, our debt has gone from $113 billion to $97 billion, meaning that Tinubu has reduced our debt by over $14 billion.

“We should be appreciating this man. Yet Peter Obi came here and lied to the Nigerian people. He took the debts and translated them into naira to make it look like the debts have increased”, he said.

 

Continue Reading

Trending