The proceeds of the recently introduced annual fee of N1,000 to be paid by motorists for Proof of Ownership Certificate verification is to be shared between the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), the states and the consultants engaged for the exercise, according to the Permanent Secretary, Lagos Ministry of Transportation, Mr. Abdulhafiz Toriola.
On 27th June, Toriola said that the Proof of Ownership Certificate would help vehicle owners and the government to guarantee the integrity of all vehicles registered on the National Vehicle and Identification Scheme database. He added that the initiative would also help in tracking stolen vehicles.
Responding via text messages to enquiries by our correspondent on how the proceeds from the yearly levy would be shared, Toriola wrote: “It is to be shared between states and FRSC and the consultant”.
He had said: “The annual Proof of Ownership Certificate is in line with compliance with legal requirements fundamental to transparency, security and accountability within the transportation network. To this end, the Federal Government has introduced the issuance of an annual Proof of Ownership Certificate for all registered vehicles.
“This certificate will serve as official documentation of a vehicle’s legal owners upon successful completion of the necessary requirements and procedures. The POC will contain vital information, including the vehicle’s registration details, such as number plate, model, and year of manufacture in addition to the owner’s name and address”.
He noted that having critically reviewed the challenges encountered in ensuring the promotion of safety and security of lives and property through the issuance of the certificate nationally and especially in the state, the Joint Tax Board, in its communiqué at the end of the emergency meeting on 9th May, 2023, resolved that the proof of ownership should be issued to motorists annually nationwide.
He said Lagos State would commence the collection of the fee in July 2023.
In a recent interview with The PUNCH, FRSC Corps Marshal Dauda Biu said that no fewer than 12,018,646 number plates had been produced since the new number plates were introduced in 2011. He however said the total number of vehicles validly registered into the electronic portal was 6,623,309, noting that the figure was exclusive of state government vehicles.
This implies that when the new levy is fully enforced nationwide, the government would make not less than N12 billion from the levy, being the N1,000 levy multiplied by the total number of vehicles in the country.
