The Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning has projected a 5 percent rise in the nation’s annual revenue with the newly introduced National Vehicle Registry (VREG). Aside from this, it disclosed that it would provide detailed information on the history of any vehicle plying the country’s roads.
VREG would also enable government agencies to track down any stolen vehicle in any part of the country.
The Federal Ministry of Finance in collaboration with the Nigeria Customs Service, NCS, in April 2921, commenced moves to create a database for imported vehicles with a view to checkmating import duty evasion and theft.
VREG would provide lasting solutions to the menaces of Customs duty evasion, vehicle theft and vehicle-related crimes, as well as ineffective vehicle insurance coverage, among others, owing to the absence of a centralized nationwide vehicle information system.
Director of Information, Federal Ministry of Finance, Mr. Charlse Nwodo, at a one day zonal sensitization seminar held in Lagos at the weekend said the implementation of VREG would boost government revenue.
Nwodo explained that the idea behind the sensitization program is to explain to relevant government agencies the need to have a single window for vehicle registration in the country.
“Today’s event is epoch-making in the sense that it will attract enormous revenue for the government. It will also help to check the influx of vehicles into the country, especially the stolen ones. If we achieve this, we will be able to track down stolen vehicles. It will also help the government and the individual to have the history of any vehicle plying the country’s roads. Government will be able to know if a vehicle is an accident vehicle. VREG will be able to provide these and many other security details of any vehicle” he said.
The Lagos State Commissioner for Transportation, Frederick Oladeinde, who also spoke at the event revealed that about three million vehicles ply the state roads and that a lot of crimes are committed using these vehicles.
Oladeinde noted that most of those who commit crimes do not have any fixed address.
“Aside boosting the revenue drive of the state, we also see it as a way of curbing crime and making sure that Lagosians are safe.
“It would also provide us valid data on how to develop road infrastructures. It would help us harmonize data among various government agencies. Individual agencies have data which we have not been able to harmonize in the interest of the country. Above all, government would know who owns a particular vehicle and what it is use for” he added
He further stated that it is important to tell the people about the benefits of having their vehicles registered.