The Directorate of Road Traffic Services (DRTS) FCT has urged motorists in the territory to report cases of extortion by its personnel for prompt action.

The spokesman of DRTS, Kalu Emetu, who stated this in an interview with journalists on Thursday in Abuja, said that most of such cases are not reported.

Mr Emetu said that if the cases were reported, it would go a long way in enabling the service to take punitive measures against such personnel.

“In my own view, when you talk about corruption or gratification, it involves both the giver and the taker, and they are both on the other side of the law.

“I implore motorists not to give money to any of the personnel for whatever reason, because doing so is aiding corruption, and the same person will later complain about it.

“If you are guilty of one offence or another, please try to go through the proper channels rather than bribing your way.

“The truth is that some motorists actually push some of our personnel into what later turns out to be extortion,” he said.

Mr Emetu said that the service has its own internal mechanisms, such as Servicom, and a standing committee that evaluates reported cases and subsequently punishes those involved.

“We actually punish some personnel who sometimes deviate from their duties, especially through extortion.

“The level of these punishments depends on the magnitude of the offence being committed.

“Sometimes some personnel lose their jobs, some get suspended without salaries for a certain period of time, and vice versa.

“While some get demoted outrightly. For instance, if a particular officer is on grade level 10, he or she may be demoted to the rank of level 9 or even as low as level 8.

“What we normally advise is for motorists to endeavour to report cases of extortion by our personnel by mentioning just their names and see what happens to them afterwards,” he said.

He said all these efforts are geared towards entrenching sanity in the system for effective and efficient service delivery to the residents of FCT.

Mr Emetu called on members of the public to join hands with the service in its quest to serve the residents better, as DRTS cannot do it alone.

He said it is only when people report unethical conduct of its personnel to the service that necessary actions can be taken against such personnel.

The spokesman promised that the service would continue to do its best to ensure that sanity is achieved for the betterment of everyone.

(NAN)