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The Federal Government on Friday announced the ban on the use of siren by Very Important Persons (VIPs) in Abuja....
The Federal Government on Friday announced the ban on the use of siren by Very Important Persons (VIPs) in Abuja. However, the President and his vice are not affected by the ban.
Announcing the ban at the Force Headquarters, the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Sunday Ehindero, said the ban became necessary because of the intelligence reports, which he said had shown the abuse of the privilege by VIP convoys blaring siren and thereby causing heavy traffic.
He said this act had caused public frustration and disenchantment over the abuse of this privilege.
Ehindero listed the categories of people to include 'honourable ministers and other top government officials. They are not allowed to use sirens and pilot cars while in Abuja and within the FCT."
He added that these category of people could only use sirens and pilot cars outside Abuja while on official assignments as the situation warrants such as in traffic hold-ups and in critical areas.
However, such VIPs, according to the IG, are not expected to blare their siren all the way throughout the journey.
The Federal Government however announced a total ban on individual from using siren. 'No private individual under any circumstance is allowed to use siren anywhere in the country," the IG said.
He also added that bullion vehicles not piloted by a police pilot car is allowed to use the siren.
Ehindero said that the Federal Government had given directive to police officers and Road Safety officials to enforce the directives. He appealed to 'all VIPs to respect this directive to avoid any embarrassment and untoward incident."
In a related development, Ehindero had called on the two officials of the Independent Corrupt Practitioners and other related offences to either apologize to the force or risk prosecution over their comments that the police and the PHCN are the most corrupt institutions in the country.
It will be recalled that Mr. Folu Olamiti and Mike Sowe, Consultant on Media and Events and Head, Public Enlightenment respectively, during a press briefing on June 28, at the ICPC Headquarters in Abuja, said that the two organizations toped the rank of corrupt public institutions in the country.
The duo was quoted to have said, 'Apart from the local government councils, the PHCN and the Nigeria Police are two of the most corrupt organizations in the Nigeria."
But Ehindero, who brought Sowe to the briefing, said it was wrong for the officials to have used a survey done in 2001 as basis for the rating.
Though Sowe tried to defend his position, the IG said he would take up the matter with the chairman of the commission, Justice Emmanuel Ayoola who is in England on official assignment, whenever he returned to the country.
'I demand a written apology from the commission and if you are not ready to give it, then I will ask that you be prosecuted. That will be done after we must have finished our investigation," he said.