An embarrassing and avoidable drama unfolded in Asaba, Delta State, on Thursday as police officers impounded the official vehicle of Hon. Justice O. A. Ogunbowale of the National Industrial Court (NIC) while enforcing the controversial tinted glass permit policy.
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The incident occurred on the very day the Nigerian Police Force (NPF) commenced its nationwide clampdown on tinted glass vehicles without permits a move the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), through its Section on Public Interest and Development Law (SPIDEL), had tried unsuccessfully to stop in court.
Earlier this week, the NBA-SPIDEL filed a suit challenging the legality of the NPF’s renewed enforcement drive. The association, led by Mr. Kunle Edun, SAN, sought an interim injunction through an Ex Parte motion before a Federal High Court (FHC) vacation judge in Abuja.
Counsel argued that since the matter was already sub judice, the police ought to suspend enforcement until judicial determination. However, the FHC vacation judge declined to hear the urgent motion, insisting that his mandate on the last day of the vacation bench was limited to delivering pending rulings, not entertaining fresh applications.
Despite pleas that immediate enforcement would unleash hardship on citizens and potentially embroil the judiciary itself, the court refused to intervene.
The NBA’s warning proved prophetic. On Thursday morning, enforcement officers under AIG Zone 5 stopped and impounded the tinted-glass vehicle of Justice Ogunbowale in Asaba.
The irony was not lost on observers: a judge fell victim to a policy that could have been stayed had a fellow judge of the FHC exercised discretion to grant temporary relief.
The episode has sparked outrage in legal circles. Commentators described it as an “avoidable humiliation” for the judiciary, noting that a simple interim order would have shielded the public from chaos and spared the embarrassment of a sitting judge.
“This is a clear reminder that judges should not shy away from doing the needful when urgent public interest is at stake,” one lawyer remarked, stressing that procedural technicalities should not override judicial responsibility.
Meanwhile, the police command has advised motorists with tinted glasses to complete their registration on www.possap.gov.ng and proceed to the State Intelligence Department (SID) at the state command headquarters in Enugu for physical verification.
It further warned that those not desirous of obtaining permits should remove such tints or replace factory-fitted glasses with transparent ones as required by law. The command also reiterated its commitment to enforcing the subsisting ban on unauthorised use of sirens, revolving lights, police SPY numbers, unallocated official plates, and unregistered vehicles.
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