Residents grumble over FCTA’s new park-and-pay policy

The decision of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) to reintroduce the park-and-pay scheme has been received with complaints by residents of the territory.

Some taxi drivers, who spoke with our repoters, expressed their opposition to the policy, saying it would bring more hardship to self-employed people in their category of work.

Transporters said the time for the reintroduction of park-and-pay the revenue generating policy was wrong as the crumbling economy with crunching effect on low-income earners would be exacerbated.

A taxi driver, Kwaje Samuel, stated that the last time the policy was in place, taxi drivers usually engage in fisticuff with those enforcing the policy.

“Then, I could be ticketed over three times in a day when I park my car to take siesta in some places. As taxi drivers, there are times, after dropping off passengers, that we try to rest due to fatigue but those enforcing it won’t care. They will demand immediate payment. I was happy when it was cancelled,” he said.

“I hope the minister stops the implementation so as not to add to the problems taxi drivers already face in the course of doing their work.

“Fuel is expensive and at times scarce. We are forced to pay money for different reasons and the government want to snuff life out of us again,” he added.

Similarly, Solomon Alade said since taxi drivers pay for ticket daily to operate, they should be exempted from the policy.

He said those with private cars have encroached into the business, indicating the rate of unemployment in the country.

However, some residents who spoke with Daily Trust commended the reintroduction of pay-and-park policy. A move they said will make cars safe and bring orderliness on roads in the FCT.

A resident in Garki, Chika Okafor, while lamenting that car owners often park on roads, obstructing other cars thereby causing traffic jam, praised the policy’s reintroduction.

She said there should be orientation for those responsible for the fees collection to avoid clashes with security agencies, while hoping that received funds are not misused.

“The problem we have in this country is corruption. Who will be accountable for the money we are going to pay? That is my major concern. Parking your car in the right place and paying is okay for me, but at the end of the day, will the money get into the government coffers?

“The other issue is the means of payment. Will it be done through card or Remita to make sure that it is the government that will benefit? But with the initiative, cars will be safe in the city when government engages the services of security personnel,” she said.

She said conditions should be given on how motorists would be charged – whether in hours or days, to avoid cars being towed away when owners do not come in time.

Another resident, Ifeanyi Ajige, also noted that the policy would put a stop to illegal parking of vehicles on roads.

“When the policy starts, those who park their cars illegally will have a rethink and change the way they park their cars. This will allow cars to be in safe hands of security agencies thereby making the car owners not to worry about theft of their cars,” he said.

He however appealed that the money involved should not be above N200, as was obtained previously, to allow average income residents to afford the price.

The Acting Secretary Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) Transportation Secretariat, Alhaji Usman Yahaya, said reintroducing the on-street parking policy was to bring sanity in the city and end the chaotic traffic situation in most parts of the city.

Why court nullified policy in 2014

The scheme was in place before a court judgment stopped the FCT Administration from further ticketing parked cars.

An FCT High Court presided by Justice Peter Affen had in 2014 held that the ‘Park & Pay’ Policy was illegal, saying that there was no law backing its operation, as no arm of government enacted the law for its establishment.

The SunTrust Savings and Loan had filed the suit against the FCT Minister, the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), Integrated Parking Services Limited (IPS) and Najec Safe Service Limited, challenging the validity of the FCT Minister’s “Park and Pay” policy.

Under the policy, motorists who desire to park at designated locations are made to pay certain amount of money ranging from N50 to N500.

Controversy had trailed the policy initially with allegations of harassment by sundry agents, extortion, illegal clamping of tyres and dubious electronic parking fees on motorists.

Reacting to this, Yahaya said the FCTA has complied with reason for the judgment which earlier nullified the policy, adding that a bye-law has been enacted to back up the operation of the policy since that was the basis for the court’s judgment in the first instance.

He insisted that the policy was not revenue driven but was intended to discipline recalcitrant road users and sanitise the roads.

The acting secretary stressed that the on-street parking scheme, which will be managed by four companies will commence in May 2021.

“On-street parking management was suspended in 2014 as a result of an FCT High Court ruling that declared the operation illegal because it was not specifically mentioned in the 2005 FCT Road Transport Regulation,” Yahaya said.

“The scheme was riddled with so much complexities, the operators were accused of many ills, but we have resolved the issues, so in May this year the scheme will kick off.

“In the past seven years, the administration had embarked on various measures aimed at addressing the concerns raised by the court and the public with regards to the scheme, the FCT Administration in collaboration with its legal team produced FCT Parking Regulations 2019 to amend the parking section of 2005 FCT Road Transport Regulations,” he said.

But when asked to state when the scheme will take off, he said the stakeholders were still fine tuning the details of how the scheme would work hence no timeline has been set yet.

He said the four companies that were running the scheme before the court halted it would continue from where they stopped and it would be reviewed later to see whether to add more operators.

He also said pricing and other sundry issues were still waiting ministerial approval from the FCT Minister, Mohammad Bello.

Policy can be nullified without enabling law – Lawyers

In their reaction, some lawyers in the FCT called for proper guidance in the operation of the new policy to avoid imposing extra burden on the masses without any value, while others expressed their intention to challenge the policy in court.

Silas Joseph Onu Esq questioned whether there were designated parking lots in Abuja as well as the purpose for the revenue to be generated from the programme since there are budgets for these projects by the National Assembly.

“This is just an exploitative project that is designed to further impoverish Nigerians. If the FCT administration is serious about parking tickets, it must firstly put in place the parking infrastructure and ensure that no one parks on the road any longer. The government cannot just convert anywhere they desire into an ATM,” he said.

For his part, Hamid Ajibola Jimoh said the test is whether the regulation on the park and pay is a subsidiary law or legislation, and whether there is any enabling law or statute that empowered the making of such law.

“If there is an enabling/substantive law that empowered its making, then, it can stand but where there is no such enabling/substantive law that empowered its making, then, it cannot stand the test of time before the court of law would declare it as null and void ab initio and the making to be ultra vires of the powers of the maker having not been permitted to make the regulation,” he said.

On his part, Malachy Nwaekpe Esq said he is not aware that the FCT has made any new regulation backing the reintroduced policy, noting that this is very important for the survival of the policy.

“However, most roads in the FCT are Federal Roads, the FCT Administration has no powers to regulate on such roads and consequently, it cannot levy vehicles parked on such Federal roads,” he said.

Obioma Ezenwobodo Esq said it appears the FCTA relied on a by-law of 2021 by the minister not the National Assembly following the nullification of the order earlier, adding “some of us will go to court to challenge it again if we get the new regulation.”

However, Sunusi Musa Esq said if the FCTA had gone through the earlier reason for the court’s initial annulment of the policy and has complied with the judgment, then the policy can stand.