Some residents of North East say the automation of process of obtaining Drivers’ Licence and Vehicle Number Plates has helped in sanitising the system and fast-tracking the process.
The motorists, who said this in a survey conducted by NAN compared the current development with what obtained in the past, and were of the view that the difference was clear.
In the survey which covered Bauchi, Borno, Yobe, Adamawa and Jigawa states, the respondents said not only was the process fast-tracked, activities of middlemen and those who faked the items, had also been checked.
They hailed in particular, the perfect synergy brought about through the introduction of the Joint Tax Board, which ensured that prices of the items were affordable and uniform in all states.
According to them, the collaboration between the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Vehicle Inspection Offices (VIO) and State Revenue Boards, is worthy of commendation as it has helped in boosting the revenue generation capacity of most state governments.
Mr Rilwanu Sulaiman, spokesperson of the FRSC in Bauchi state, said issuance of Drivers’ Licence and Number Plates, was a tripartite arrangement between FRSC, state government Board of Internal Revenue (BIR) and VIO.
“The process of securing driver’s license and number plates in recent time has been a tripartite arrangement between the State Board of Internal Revenue, the state V.I.O (under Ministry of Works and Transportation) and the Federal Road Safety Corps.
“The FRSC is equipped with the capacity and equipment to capture applicant’s data and print the document.
“State Board of Internal Revenue collects payments for learner’s permit and driver’s license, while the VIOs provide driving certificate for qualified drivers to enable the processing of the licence,” he said.
According to him, technology has made it even easier to download, fill and submit application forms on-line, with fees paid into designated bank accounts.
A commercial vehicle driver in Bauchi, Modi Sambo, said with the introduction of the online purchase of number plates, “the process is now fast and transparent.”
A private Vehicle owner in Bauchi, Alhaji Mohammmed Babale said that he paid for the number plate through a bank and waited for only ‘few days’ to collect the items.
“The process is simple is now simple, it is not rigorous like before,” he said
In Borno, the State Internal Revenue Service said it had a fixed fee for motor vehicle registration and license, which was agreed and approved by the Joint Task Board (JTB) before implementation.
Alhaji Baba Gama’a, Director Road Taxes, said that the cost of Number Plate is N12,500, Vehicle Registration N6,250, Vehicle Licence N2,500, Registration Booklet N1,250, and Proof of Ownership, N300.
“If the vehicle is above one million naira, you will pay N6,250 for registration, but if it is below one million naira, you will pay N3,125.
“For the out of series, the cost of the number plate alone is between N50,300 and N46,550, Fancy Number Plate, between N90,300 and N86,550, while ordinary Number Plate is N15,000.
“For commercial vehicles, which include trailers, tankers, tippers, lorries, buses, pick-up vans and taxis, the cost ranges from N19,400 to N36,400,” he said.
Gama’a said that the process had been automated since 2018, with all registrations synchronised in a database.
Meanwhile, Mr Sanusi Ibrahim, Sector Commander, FRSC, Borno Command, said that the cost of Drivers’ Licence for three years is N6, 350, while that of five years costs N10,450.
Ibrahim said that most people complaining of high cost of drivers licence usually patronised third parties who extort them.
He said the procedures to follow to obtain the licence included production of attestation letter from the company of purchase, receipts of purchase/invoice and delivery note from the company of purchase.
Others are letter of proof of ownership of the car and means of identification such as National Identity Card or International Passport.
In Jigawa, FRSC said the issuance of new Drivers’ Licence with three years validity remained N6,350, and N10,450 for the one with five years validity.
Mr Ibrahim Murtala, the Sector Head of Drivers License Centre (DLC) in Jigawa,
said the system had been automated.
Murtala said the licences were issued by the Joint Tax Board (JTB), under a tripartite arrangement involving VIO, FRSC and Board of Internal Revenue (BIR).
According to him, the VIO is responsible for testing the driver, FRSC responsible for biometric registration and BIR responsible for payment confirmation and issuance of Learners’ Permit.
A private motorist, Ibrahim Abbas, described the process of obtaining the license as fair.
“The process here is fair, unlike what is obtainable in other places where you spend much time before you are registered for the license,” Abbas said.
NAN
