Anyone driving tinted glass vehicles without permit now
risk a fine of N50,000 or a six-month jail term or both.
This was as a result of the final
passage by the Senate, on Thursday, the Bill for an Act to amend the Motor
Vehicle (Prohibition of Tinted Glass) Act aimed at checking indiscriminate use
of tinted glass vehicles without approval.
The options of fine, jail term or
both were contained in the bill, first read on the floor on April 18, 2013 and
sponsored by Senator Ita Enang.
The decision of the Senate followed
the adoption and approval of the report of its joint committee on Police
Affairs and Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters on the bill.
The chairman of the joint
committee, Senator Paulinus Nwagwu, said the bill “seeks essentially, to
amend the extant law in order to check indiscriminate use of tinted glass
vehicles which beat security checks and carry out nefarious activities.”
Nwagwu said the need for the bill
arose, following the reactions of Nigerians to the recent announcement by
the Nigeria Police of its intention to arrest and prosecute Nigerians driving
cars with tinted glass.
He said it was, therefore, necessary
to let Nigerians know that the police was not trying to introduce a new law but
was merely trying to enforce an already existing Regulations 66 (2) of
the National Traffic Regulations of 1997 and the Motor Vehicles (Prohibition of
Tinted Glass) Act.
Nwagwu said the Motor Vehicle
(Prohibition of Tinted Glass ) Act Amendment Bill 2013 was thus sponsored to,
among others, amend the enabling act with a view to streamlining it with the
present realities.
“The bill also seeks to address the
persisting injustice meted out to Nigerians through embarrassment and
harassment, which constitutes a serious affront to the fundamental rights
of Nigerians against discrimination as enshrined under Section 42 of the
Constitution,” he added.
He said various stakeholders, during
the public hearing on the bill, had emphasised the need to address
current upsurge in terrorism and other crimes like kidnapping, child
trafficking.
The bill, among other provisions,
requested buyers of imported vehicles with tinted, shaded, coloured, darkened
or treated glass to change it to transparent ones within 14 days from the date
of arrival in Nigeria or date of purchase.
In the alternative, it stipulated
that buyers of such vehicles should request for a permit for the use of such
tinted glass vehicles from the Office of the Inspector General of Police,
anywhere in the country, within 90 days of importing the vehicle.
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