There has been a shared feeling of elation among motorists in Abuja following the announcement on Tuesday, 22 April 2014, of the suspension of the Park and Pay Scheme of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA).
The Park and Pay policy which was introduced in 2012 required motorists in Abuja metropolis to pay fees between N50 to N100 to park their vehicles on designated streets for periods ranging from 30 minutes upwards between the hours of 7am and 6pm.
The FCTA registered four companies – Automaten Technik Haumann Nigeria (ATB), Safe Parking Limited, (SPL) Integrated Parking Services limited (IPS), and Platinum Parking Management Services, (PPMS) – and assigned to each different areas of Abuja where the companies would implement parking laws and penalise non-compliant drivers.
Initiated to manage traffic situation within the capital city, this policy was however marred by varied allegations of abuse by parking ticket vendors. Whenever the motorists narrate their experiences with one or more operators of the scheme, it is often a story of extortions and harassment.
As a result of these allegations of illegal activities by operators, the House of Representatives earlier in March declared the policy a fraud, following a motion sponsored by Hon. Bitrus Kaze to investigate the concession of the Park-And-Pay Policy.
Hon. Kaze stated that “the policy is being carried out without a clearly defined law to regulate the concession, management and operation of the electronic ticketing and parking regime, qualification of prospective bidders, the designated areas as well as specific times for ticketing, the percentage of funds to be remitted to government and penalties for defaulters.”
He further noted that the ticket vendors prefer to indiscriminately clamp and tow cars which have to be reclaimed from their premises with huge sums of money ranging from N5, 000 to N20, 000, thereby subjecting many motorists to harrowing experiences often resulting in physical combat and assault contrary to the norms of decency and respect for fundamental human rights and dignity of persons.
Similarly, Daily Trust columnist, Mr Idang Alibi, wrote in the paper on 4 April: “if, for instance, you park in any designated parking lot and if the mud guard of your car as much as encroaches by a centimetre on the next lot, you are 'convicted' by IPS thugs of wrongful parking and slammed with a fine of N15, 000!”
He alleged that the IPS was an agent of the FCT Administration to collect fines or extort money from residents who are deemed to have violated the parking rules.
The situation reached a climax when a private firm, Sun Trust Savings and Loans, filed a suit against the FCT Minister, along with IPS, ATB, and the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), challenging the introduction and implementation of the policy.
In his ruling on the matter, Justice Peter Affen of the High Court in Apo, on 17 April declared the policy illegal and ordered its immediate stoppage. Justice Affen said there was no law made either by the National Assembly or the AMAC supporting the policy.
In reaction to the judgment all motorists who spoke to Metropole without exception, expressed delight over the development.
A civil servant, Mr Aruwa Negedu, described the policy as disorganised and fraudulent. “Abuja is not ready for it yet,” he said. “Some roads are not even yet marked, how do you know where to park or not? Yet these people appear from nowhere to demand money from you claiming you have parked wrongly.”
Similarly, Mr William Chukwunonso who has had his car clamped on two occasions said the scheme was merely an official means of exploiting motorists. “All they were interested in was to make you pay high fees for offences,” he said. “It was obvious they were not after chicken change. They lure you into parking wrongly so that they can charge you N10, 000. Yet when you park sometimes you hardly see these officials. Only for you to come out to find that your tyre has been clamped. I am relieved that this whole sham is over.”
This, though, may not be the end of the Park and Pay policy. The Special Assistant on Media to the FCT Minister, Mr Nosike Ogbuenyi, in a statement on Tuesday said the administration was in the process of reviewing the FCT Road Transport Regulation, 2005 in order to close all legal gaps and properly capture the on-street park and pay scheme in it, including the incorporation of the extensive review already started by the administration.
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