The Federal Capital Territory Administration has defended its clampdown on vehicles with tinted glass permits, insisting that many of the permits in circulation are fake and linked to criminal activities.
FCTA Director of Security Services, Adamu Gwary, who was represented by the Director of Command and Control Unit, Dr. Peter Olumuji, during a Citywide Sanitation Operation on Monday, said the action was necessary despite the Inspector-General of Police’s directive pegging October 2025 as the enforcement date.
The Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, had on August 11extended the grace period for enforcing the ban on tinted glass permits, directing that the enforcement would take effect from October 2025, giving motorists time to regularise their papers.
Despite the timeline, the FCT administration on August 19 said it had seized over 700 vehicles in Abuja, for operating with illegal tints and forged permits, as part of its renewed clampdown on criminally-inclined motorists in Abuja
Olumuji explained that security concerns justified the clampdown, noting that vehicles with illegal tints were frequently implicated in “one-chance” robberies and other crimes in the FCT.
“We’ve been able to do other clearance operations within the city centre, especially impounding vehicles with tinted glasses. There are constant reports that these are vehicles being used for one chance. And people have also raised the concern that the IG of Police has given October 2025 as the effective date for implementation.
“But notwithstanding, I want to tell you without mincing words that we have impounded vehicles that have faked the tinted glass permits, you know, and anybody who has the capacity to fake that permit also has the capacity to commit crime.
“So when people try to bring up the sentiment that the IG talked about in October 2025, we also want them to consider the security implications of allowing such people to continue roaming the streets with their glass tinted,” he stated.
The operation to rid the city of illegal activities also extended to the demolition of shanties in Bunkoro District, popularly referred to as Gwarimpa, near the Map Global Estate.
Director of Development Control, Mukhtar Galadima, told journalists during the exercise that over 1,000 makeshift structures had already been cleared along the Ring Road 3 corridor.
“Today’s exercise is part of the Citywide Sanitation Operation aimed at enhancing security. The stretch of road here is about two kilometres, and it has been taken over by shacks, squatters, and people of questionable character,” he said.
He explained that while indigenous settlements along the corridor were left standing pending the presence of the Resettlement and Compensation Department, other illegal structures would be demolished to prevent them from serving as cover for criminal elements.
According to him, the FCTA has discussed with relevant authorities about ensuring the cleared areas are not reoccupied, especially since work is ongoing on the adjoining N16 road project.
“We have been intimated by the Department of Resettlement and Compensation that there are some indigenous communities on the corridor. That’s why we try as much as possible not to interfere with the existence of such communities.
“However, for tomorrow’s exercise to be smooth, we want our representative of Resettlement and Compensation to be with us, so that they can guide us which and which is the indigenous communities. And those that are not indigenous communities, we can excuse them and tell them to move on,” Gwary stated.
Both directors assured residents that the FCTA’s combined clearance and enforcement operations would continue across the capital, with an emphasis on securing lives and property, improving the aesthetics of the city, and curbing crime.
