The Nigeria Police Force declares covering vehicle number plates without a valid reason as a criminal offense.
The Force Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, revealed this information in a statement posted on his official handle on Friday.
According to the Force PRO, maintaining visibility of registration numbers at all times is mandatory.
Adejobi said, “It is a common thing to see many vehicle owners and drivers to cover their number plates, for no reason, this is wrong and even criminal.”
“You don’t cover your number plate for any reason. It is as important and compulsory for all vehicles to be duly registered, so it’s compulsory to make reg. numbers visible at all times.”
Nevertheless, he noted that there are exemptions for “pennant officers” and leaders of the three branches of government—executive, legislative, and judicial—who may display pennants or flags on their official vehicles.
Adejobi said, “The seal of their offices or ranks (for military or police) go with their numbers and pennants. Once its 6pm, the pennant must go down and their numbers covered, or when they are not in the car while the drivers move their cars.”
“The flags must be covered with the reg number or their seal of office on their cars. This impunity must stop in Nigeria, and we need to know the right thing to do.”
“Our officers and men and other traffic management agencies are aware of this and hereby urged to go after any violator, as such is criminal. It encourages recklessness and crimes with impunity. Let’s collectively kick against it,” he said.
Remember that the police had previously imposed restrictions on the unauthorized utilization of unmarked vehicles and obscured license plates nationwide.