Breaking: Court Issues Fresh Order Against FRSC as Details Emerge
- A Federal High Court in Kano ruled that FRSC officers acted outside their jurisdiction by stopping motorists on township and local government roads
- The court declared FRSC's actions in Kano metropolis unlawful and a violation of citizens' rights to liberty and freedom of movement under the 1999 Constitution
- The court awarded N800,000 in damages, ordered a public apology in a national newspaper, and issued a perpetual injunction against further FRSC harassment on Kano State roads
A Federal High Court sitting in Kano has determined that the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) holds no legal mandate to operate on state and local government roads, declaring the commission's enforcement activities within Kano metropolis unlawful and unconstitutional.
Hon. Justice M. S. Shuaibu delivered the judgment on Thursday, July 16, in a fundamental rights suit brought by Kano-based legal practitioner Abba Hikima, Esq. against the FRSC.
Source: Twitter
The court found that FRSC officers exceeded their lawful authority when, in July 2025, they mounted checkpoints on township roads, stopping and questioning motorists, including Hikima himself, without any primary traffic offence to justify the intervention.
Court finds rights violated
Justice Shuaibu held that the commission's conduct on those roads breached the constitutional guarantees of personal liberty and freedom of movement enshrined in Sections 35 and 41 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Daily Trust reported.
The court upheld all the principal reliefs Hikima had sought. Among the orders granted was a perpetual injunction barring FRSC officers from stopping, questioning, or in any way harassing motorists on Kano State roads without lawful authority.
Additionally, the commission was directed to publish a formal public apology in a national newspaper and to pay the applicant N800,000 in damages and costs.
How the case began
The dispute traces back to July 2024, when FRSC operatives deployed checkpoints across township roads in Kano and began demanding driver's licences from motorists without any recorded primary traffic violation, Vanguard reported.
Hikima, who was among those stopped, subsequently filed a suit at the Federal High Court, contending that the FRSC's statutory remit is confined to federal highways and does not extend to roads under state or local government jurisdiction.
The court's ruling affirmed that position, drawing a clear jurisdictional boundary that limits FRSC's enforcement powers to federal roads alone.
FRSC begins recruitment
Previously, Legit.ng reported that the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) announced that its recruitment exercise for 2026 will start on Friday, July 3, and called on qualified Nigerians to apply for openings across its officer, marshal inspectorate, and road marshal assistant cadres.
The agency said applications would be accepted online for four weeks through its recruitment portal, adding that the application process is free.
Source: Legit.ng
