Rights activist and lawyer Deji Adeyanju has threatened to sue the Nigerian police over a proposed enforcement of third-party insurance for vehicle owners, questioning why the officers were only interested in squeezing money out of Nigerians in light of other pressing security challenges.

In a letter dated January 13 and seen by Peoples Gazette, Mr Adeyanju gave a 48-hour ultimatum to the inspector general of police, Kayode Egbetokun, to shelve any plan of extorting already-struggling Nigerians under the guise of enforcing the third-party vehicle insurance or face a lawsuit.

He asserted that the enforcement fell out of the police purview because it was “not backed by the Police Act, being the extant law of the Nigerian Police Force.”

Police spokesperson Muyiwa Adejobi did not immediately return comments on whether the police will succumb to Mr Adeyanju’s demand or slug it out in court.

According to Mr Adeyanju, the Federal Road Safety Corps could only enforce third-party insurance, stressing that the police has no business meddling in such matters.

“The power to regulate issues bordering on the safety of persons and vehicles on Nigerian roads is rather domiciled with the Federal Road Safety Corps,” the lawyer stated on Monday.

Mr Adeyanju accused the police chief of focusing on revenue generation rather than protecting lives and properties for which the security outfit was established.

To buttress his accusation, Mr Adeyanju mentioned a N5,375 levy that the police had planned to impose on Nigerians “to register their vehicles on the Police Central Motor Registry platform.”

The plan was cancelled in July 2024 following an outcry and major intervention of notable Nigerians.

“We must, therefore, ask why is the Nigeria Police Force fixated on policies that are apparently aimed at generating money while the vast majority of Nigerians across the six geopolitical zones continue to suffer from grave insecurity ranging from kidnapping, armed robbery,  terrorism, murder etc,” said Mr Adeyanju. 

The human rights lawyer added, “How does the third-party vehicle insurance solve our immediate security issues?”