Police Ban Unmarked, Covered Vehicle Number Plates

This was disclosed by Mohammed Adamu, the acting Inspector General of Police, who gave the order through a statement by Frank Mba, the Force Public Relations Officer, on Tuesday, saying that the order became imperative following intelligence reports.

He said the intelligence reports revealed that the unwholesome practice might be deployed by some unscrupulous persons to commit election-related offences before, during, and after the Saturday, March 9, 2019 governorship and State Assembly elections.

Part of the statement read: “Apart from the possibility of the aforementioned threats to the polls, the IGP also noted that the covering of vehicle number plate amounts to a clear breach of the Road Traffic Act and other relevant laws of the land.

“In addition, the act could also impact negatively on national security and safety and has the capacity to heightens criminal activities, engender atmosphere of lawlessness, shield perpetrators of crime and places unnecessary pressure on security agencies in their routine crime prevention and monitoring tasks.

“The IGP, therefore, directs all Assistant Inspectors General of Police (AIGs) and Commissioners of Police (CPs) in the zonal and state commands to strictly enforce the restriction order at their various Areas of Responsibilities (AOR) and to ensure that all defaulters are dealt with according to the law.

“The IGP also warns that any security personnel found escorting their principal with an unmarked vehicle or those with masked vehicle number plates will be arrested and dealt with accordingly.”