The Nigeria Police Force has continue to reiterate its determination to force Nigerians to embrace the electronic central motor registry registration process (e-CMR), which will cost all vehicle owners to pay N5000 yearly to the pulse of the police authority.
Nigerians have accused the Nigeria police of using the e-CMR to further impoverish Nigerians while the police will raise billion of naira into its coffer through the registration.
Nigerians are currently poised to violently resist the e-CMR that is described as illegal and means of extorting the vulnerable Nigerians.
Under the regime of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, which is just few months after a year, Nigerians have been subjected to unimaginable hardship through an increment in what different government agencies charge Nigerians as well as government full deregulation of sectors like petroleum, education, transport, sectors, among others that directly have negative impact on the citizen.
Many Nigerians have abandoned their vehicles as a result of their inability to afford the price of fuel, increase in licensing fees by vehicle licensing unit of the government and pointed out that the yearly N5000 the police want to be collecting from Nigerians will worsen their economic situation and further reduce Nigerian purchasing power.
Fighting against e-CMR, the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), in a letter addressed to the Inspector General of Police, and signed by its chairman, John Aikpokpo Martins, and Secretary, Funmi Adeogun, said, “The attention of the Nigeria Bar Association Section on Public Interest (NBA-SPIDEL) has been recently drawn to reports all around the country that vehicle owners are mandated to register and obtain a Central Motor Information System (CMRIS) Certificate from the Nigeria Police Force for a cost of not less than #6,000.00 (Six thousand naira).”
The letter titled, “In Re: Issuance of Central Motor Registry Information System (CMRIS) Certificate by the Nigeria Police Force: A Demand for the Immediate Stoppage of Same”, NBA stated, “NBA-SPIDEL also has it on good authority that the men of the Nigeria Police have since started enforcing compliance wherein purported defaulters have been made to part with their hard-earned monies in thousands of Naira.”
NBA resolved, “In the light of these developments, the NBA-SPIDEL questions the legal propriety which enables the Nigeria Police Force to issue Central Motor Information System (CMRIS) Certificates to vehicle owners, particularly when it is not clearly stated in any laws (at least to our knowledge) that the Nigeria Police has any authority to issue car licenses or certificates of any nature to to vehicle owners after due registration of vehicles in the appropriate office.
“NBA-SPIDEL states further that any such certificate being issued by the Nigeria Police Force without any legal backing is outright illegal, null, and void and therefore of no consequence. NBA-SPIDEL therefore uses this opportunity to reiterate the fact that the duty of the Nigeria Police in protecting the citizens and enforcing the law does not extend to collecting monies and/or issuing certificates to vehicle owners. Regrettably, the men of the Nigeria Police Force have since taken advantage of the ignorance of unsuspecting Nigerians by extorting large sums of money from them for failure to present the CMRIS certificate on demand during road search.
“This illegality has to stop immediately. Consequently, the NBA-SPIDEL states that these acts of illegality must not continue unabated and therefore unequivocally demand that the Nigeria Police immediately stop the issuance and/or demand for the Central Motor Information System (CMRIS) Certificate. NBA-SPIDEL, therefore, humbly but strongly demands that you issue a directive immediately stopping the issuance of/demand for the CMRIS certificates nationwide.
“NBA-SPIDEL further demands that the registration website and every other physical registration centres be shut down, and every money already collected from Nigerians be refunded to them within 3 days of the receipt of this notice. Please note that failure, neglect or refusal to comply with this lawful demand within 7 days of the receipt of this letter will compel NBA-SPIDEL to seek appropriate sanctions in court against your esteemed office and the Nigeria Police Force.”
But in a twist of event, the police said, “Following the reconfiguration and commencement of the electronic central motor registry registration process (e-CMR), the Police has deemed it necessary to highlight the benefits and effectiveness of the e-CMR initiative which is designed to ensure the safety and security of all types of vehicles including motorcycles by collating data imputed into the system by vehicle owners and acting on such to flag the vehicles if reported stolen.”
According to a statement signed by the Force Public Relations Officer (FPPRO), ACP Oluwamuyiwa Adejobi, the police claimed, “The e-CMR will provide a firsthand database to the Force for curbing vehicular crimes as dedicated officers can access real-time comprehensive data of every vehicle on their tablets. Similarly, the e-CMR will prevent multiple registration of vehicles and serve as a database to collate biometric and other data of vehicle owners and individuals, adding value to the national database and incident report portal generated from other Ministries, Departments and Agencies towards general security.
“Furthermore, contrary to news making the round and insinuations about the e-CMR, the NPF wishes to state categorically that the e-CMR is not a revenue generating platform but an initiative to digitalize policing for effectiveness and general safety of lives and property of Nigeria residents.
“The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, Ph.D., NPM, has ordered an immediate suspension of the proposed enforcement of the e-CMR initially scheduled to commence on the 29th of July, 2024. This is to give ample opportunity for mass enlightenment and education of all citizens and residents on the process, benefits and effectiveness in solving the challenge of vehicle related crimes, and protection of individual and corporate vehicle ownership.
“Members of the public are urged to obtain the digitalized CMR certificate online at https://cmris.npf.gov.ng. For further inquiries, individuals can contact the 24/7 hotline (02018870133), CMR Command Centre at FHQ Abuja (08117777666, 09169892000) and FHQ Annex Lagos (08117777555, 09169891000). Technical support is also available at [email protected].
“In light of this, we seek the understanding and support of all well-meaning Nigerians and residents to key into the e-CMR system. In the same vein, the IGP charges all Police officers to desist from requesting for e-CMR certificates as individuals found extorting or exploiting members of the public on the guise of not having e-CMR certificates will be sanctioned accordingly as the enforcement which will be done by only dedicated officers has been suspended till further notice.”
