INVESTIGATION: LASTMA’s money-spinning ‘factory’ at Oshodi, Lagos

Business is booming for the men of the Lagos State Management Agency (LASTMA) as they haul in motorists in droves to pay hefty fines for all manner of road infractions.

In one single case on Tuesday, May 30, 2023, the agency raked in N1.4 million from seven motorists who paid N200,000 fine each.

The men were caught driving in wrong directions in various parts of Lagos. They were arraigned before a mobile court beside the agency’s head office at Oshodi and were found guilty.

The court, presided over by Magistrate T. O. Fashanu, ordered that their cars be forfeited to the state government. The motorists were, however, later asked to write an undertaking never to take one-way in their lives and were subsequently fined N200,000 each before their cars were released to them.

One other motorist arraigned alongside the one-way takers was fined N30,000 for ‘willful obstruction’. He had told the court he came in from Ibadan and had a medical condition that warranted him parking by the side of the road before LASTMA officials arrested him. He paid additional N10,000 for the cost of towing his car to Oshodi.

There were dozens of other cases with the offenders asked to pay various sums of money as fines.

Accusation of deception and extortion

Many of the motorists spoken to by our reporter accused many of the LASTMA officials of dishonest conducts including luring motorists into one-way traps and soliciting bribes.

Those who play ball are allegedly left off the hook, while those who refuse are taken to court where they will have no way out other than paying any fine imposed by the mobile court.

One of the men who paid N200,000 fine before he could repossess his car said he was arrested after he entered a street around Montgomery, Yaba, Lagos without realizing he was driving in the wrong direction.

The gentleman, Ariyo Alatise (Not real names) told Microsecondnews: “The signpost indicating that the road was one-way had been covered. As an experienced driver you may sense that you are going in the wrong direction if no vehicle is following you and other vehicles are facing you. Sometimes, too, you can know when all the cars parked on a street are facing you and there is none facing where you are going. But none of this was present when I drove in. In fact, I saw many cars parked facing the same direction I was headed. I had not driven more than a minute when LASTMA officials pounced on me and impounded my car.”

He said there were LASTMA officials at the junction leading to the street and they did nothing to hint him that he was entering the street from the wrong direction only for them to pounce on him as soon as he drove in.

He alleged that he saw commercial buses plying one-way, but were ignored by the LASTMA officials.

An investigation by a Microsecondnews reporter at the Oshodi, Lagos headquarters of the agency on Tuesday revealed brisk business akin to a very busy market.

The entire premises of the agency was swarming with men and women who were brought in for one offence or the other.

Immunity stickers

Some of the motorists spoken to also alleged that there were rackets and unwholesome practices among the LASTMA officials, especially those attached to the taskforce.

One commercial driver disclosed to Microsecondnews at Oshodi that there were some stickers on commercial buses that confer immunity against arrest on the vehicles carrying them.

According to him, commercial drivers pay up to N50,000 monthly to a clique of LASTMA officials to be exempted from arrest for traffic violations.

“Once you pay the money, you are given a sticker which you place on your car. No LASTMA official will arrest you. They will just pretend as if they are not seeing you, but will arrest anyone who follows you to break the same traffic law” the driver said.

He said the stickers look ordinary to everyone else, but they have special meaning to the drivers and the officials.

He gave some of the stickers as ‘Omo Oga’, ‘Ifa Eko’, ‘DST’, ‘Sanje’, ‘AYT2’, ‘77x’, ‘Psalm 21 2023’, ‘Austin’, and ‘Kingsley’.

Our reporter started looking out for the sticker names mentioned and saw one on a commercial bus on his way back from the LASTMA head office at Oshodi.

The stickers, ‘Psalm 21 2023’ were placed at the front and the back of the bus.

Another motorist spoken to at the premises of the agency’s taskforce opposite Arena Shopping Mall, Oshodi, alleged that LASTMA officials take out apprehended motorists for bargaining that can either lead to the release of such motorists or their arraignment before a mobile court, which sits every Tuesday and Thursday.

Efforts to get the reaction of the agency failed to yield positive results as of the time of filing this report.