The Lagos State Government has started giving free, fine-free releases to owners of impounded vehicles.
This was announced on Tuesday in Lagos by the state’s commissioner for transportation, Dr. Frederic Oladeinde.
He said that the state government made the decision as a measure to ease the cash crisis on its inhabitants as a result of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s naira redesign strategy and that the process started last Saturday and is currently underway.
The commissioner stated that fines would be dropped, and vehicles seized for minor traffic infractions would be released to their owners.
“There are some people who committed crimes during that time, and we understand that it wasn’t easy to find money,” he said.
“Considering the governor’s generosity, the governor has determined that it is appropriate to ensure that those who committed crimes during that time period and either wanted to pay or couldn’t pay due to a lack of money, come and pick up their automobiles and he has waived the fines.
“Keep in mind that big offenses committed are not included in that. These are only small traffic violations that have been committed in Lagos, therefore the governor’s generosity is an attempt to demonstrate compassion and convey the message that, while we recognize how terrible things have been, we do not want to prevent you from getting by.
“All those who have broken the law during that time should come and pick up their cars, but that doesn’t mean people should keep breaking the law, therefore right now what we are doing is warning them not to break the law again.”
Remember that the governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, reduced BRT fares by 50% as a palliative measure to mitigate the impact of the naira redesign policy on residents of the state.
“When you look at what the governor offered, especially at the time of the financial crisis, we have decreased public transportation fares by 50%,” the commissioner continued. “In order to lessen the suffering of our people, we have lowered the fare by 50% for use of our BRTs and all Lagos state-funded public transportation, including Lag Ride.”
“Aside from that, moving away from transportation, we’ve established food banks in certain locations. Thus, we are starting to distribute palliative care to help individuals get through this difficult financial time.
“We’re pleased that the APC won the national election, and some of these policies are starting to change,” said the speaker.
“Thus, we are expecting that things will get back to normal quickly.”
