RANDOM MUSINGS:
POLICE E-CMR PROJECT, THAT BRT CORRUPTION REPORT AND ONE OTHER THING.
with
Ben C. Abraham.
POLICE E-CMR AND THE IMPOSSIBLE
Olumuyiwa Adejobi, the NP Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO) has some credit for his regular and sometimes witty engagements on the Force social media handles. His deft communications with netizens hold him out, with regard to his post, as a square peg in a square hole. His mandate, in any case, is almost an impossible one; to launder the image of an Organization touted as the most corrupt in Nigeria, at the least. For sure, Nigerians have long given up on the Police. Yet Adejobi, an Assistant Commissioner labours to rewrite the story of his employers, our Police. And in executing that difficult mandate, Adejobi on Thursday 19th September hailed the introduction of the Police Electronic Central Motor Registry (E-CMR) as a game changer in the area of vehicle registration and related things. Via tweets on his X handle, the FPRO presented the innovation as a magic wand that will eliminate all manner of inefficiencies in vehicle registration, change of ownership and tracking. Indeed, if well managed a digitized central motor registry should do that and more. It is not rocket science. Having stated that, ACP Adejobi then added that the E-CMR will eliminate manual checks for vehicle papers by police officers. Really?? On this score the FPRO must be in dreamland or an alternate universe. Is it possible for police men to stop asking for vehicle papers on the highways and city roads? If they stop how will they meet the target money to remit to their ogas in the office? And if E-CMR enforcement begins and every vehicle owner is yet to migrate to it, will the stop and search specialists not use it as an opportunity for more exaction? For the men in black, every innovation creates room for the perpetuation of what they know best, extortion. If Adejobi and his ogas are truly desirous of innovation for easy commuting, then they should begin by paying an unscheduled visit to the Shagamu – Benin Expressway without fanfare or their usual coterie of escorts, assistants and all. During the visit they should take note of the number of police stop-and-search points on that highway. They should also note the distance between these stops. And even more pertinent, they should take in the whole gamut of transactions between their men and commuters that go on within that stretch of road. If frustration can be exemplified, a trip on that road perfectly fits it. So what innovation is Adejobi talking about? Meanwhile, let the FPRO inform the IG that a High Court sitting in Warri has put a hold on the enforcement of this E-CMR thing, thanks to the NBA Section on Public Interest Law (SPIDEL). If he will not be cited for contempt of court, let him first clear that judicial roadblock. We are waiting for the report of your unscheduled visit dear Mr Adejobi.
THAT REPORT ON THE LAGOS BRT CESSPIT;
A report which has since gone viral on the depth of corrupt practices in the Lagos State BRT system has further reinforced what most vehicle owners know or have experienced but lack the appropriate means to escalate, and even more importantly, get Lagos State officials to stop. The report, titled ‘‘Sanwo-Olu’s Lagos Leadership Shame: How 1bn goes into corrupt private BRT officials in one month’’, is based on a doctoral research experience by the author, Bola Oyewole. The author opened a can of worms into how officials of the Lagos State BRT enforcement team in collusion with the Nigerian Police and officials of the dreaded LASTMA operate a most callous extortion racket that generates about N1bn every month, not for the Government, but into private pockets. In very detailed and lucid presentation, Bola shed light on his experience with these coldhearted officials when his driver ‘mistakenly’ skidded into a BRT lane along Ikorodu road on his way to Ikorodu town. He stated that he was accosted by the enforcers and taken to the BRT garage at Ketu near Ojota where his car tires were deflated and he was given the options of either paying N50k and let go or N70k and be taken to a court with the possibility of being jailed. He opted to pay the official N70k in order to enhance his research. A POS machine was brought and he made the payment but upon demand for a receipt he was told to go ask Tinubu. The report narrated how within the span of 3 hours, while he negotiated with the men, over 150 ‘offenders’ were arrested, brought into the garage and fleeced. The author started the report by detailing how his lecturer abroad had proved with copious evidence that Nigerians were fantastically corrupt. He said that the lecturer outlined instances of his own experience while on visits to Nigeria. It was the lecturer’s narrative that challenged his own research focus and experience. This report is in the public domain and by now Lagos State officials would have read it. What we don’t know is what will come out of it. If you are a regular road user in Lagos State, you would have seen or experienced this and other infractions. For instance, these BRT officials who are more of thugs wait in the wings for any vehicle that marginally crosses the BRT line on Eko bridge inwards Costain, even when overtaking articulated trucks. They pounce on the ‘offenders’ and you and I know how it would end up. It is ditto for other roads in the State. In Lagos, traffic management officials don’t solve problems, they create them. Lagos State prides as the centre of excellence in Nigeria and always regales everyone with how innovative the State has been. Unfortunately, life in this ‘centre of excellence’ is very hard and brutish. Over to you Mr. Governor
……AND ONE OTHER THING:
MANHOLES IN LAGOS;
Still on Lagos State, this time it is the abundance of manholes on roads in the State. From Ikorodu road, to Ikeja, Surulere, lekki and Lagos Island manholes, not potholes, dot the roads. For instance, at the intersection of Bode Thomas road and western avenue there is a massive hole right in the middle of the road. That hole can take in a full grown adult. Driving from the National stadium to Alaka along the service lane, one must be adept at driving to avoid the multiple holes on that stretch. Vehicles have been damaged while pedestrians have sustained life threatening injuries through these manholes especially during rainfalls when the roads are flooded. One wonders if there is indeed a Government Department that has the charge of this kind of repairs. We see the State public works Agency do palliative work on roads but why the repairs do not touch these dangerous manholes is still baffling. The PWD (public works Department) of the pre-colonial and early post-independence era comes to mind here. They maintained roads, culverts and manholes effectively. What is the technology involved in fixing manholes that Lagos State Government lacks? How do State officials drive through these roads without batting an eyelid? Does the Lagos State Ministry of Works really have a monitoring unit that goes round to take note of the condition of the roads? Are there no paid officials in charge of observing the roads and bringing reports for action? Some of these manholes have been around for upwards of 5 years and it speaks volumes of the quality of Governance dished out to the citizens today. In similar fashion, a certain Governor of Lagos State executed a street signage project through which all streets and roads in Lagos State had their names clearly written and fixed atop poles. Driving around the State then was made easy for road users and the threat of arrest by LASTMA officers was minimal. Today, many of these street signs are no more and the Government doesn’t think any better of it. It is the case of one step forward and two steps backwards, apologies to Reggae icon Max Romeo.