VIOs not completely banned from Lagos roads – Government

The Lagos State Government says it has not completely banned the operations of the Vehicle Inspection Service being performed by Vehicle Inspection Officers in the state.
The state Commissioner for Transportation, Prince Olanrewaju Elegushi, and the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Steve Ayorinde, said this in separate interviews granted the News Agency of Nigeria on Tuesday in Lagos.
They said that the VIS officials only went for training to improve their services in line with global best practices.
NAN reports that Governor Akinwumi Ambode had on May 4 ordered the VIOs to keep off the roads following complaints from the public on how they were discharging their functions.
Elegushi, said: “Nobody is banning VIOs from the roads; there is no directive to that effect from the governor of Lagos State.
“Right now, the VIS officials in the state are undergoing training on how they will improve their services on Lagos roads.
“It is a month’s long event for the officials where they will undergo intensive training so that they will be able to deliver quality and better service across the state.
“We all believe that VIOs need to perform their functions in a more civilised way and be technologically driven.”
Also, Ayorinde told NAN the order to the Vehicle Inspection Officers to vacate the roads was to pave way for its reforms.
The commissioner stated that it will also come up with improved service delivery in the state.
Ayorinde said: “There is an ongoing reform as to how the VIO carries out its operations, which might require that the inspection officers are off the streets at this point.
“The government is keen to have their operations more streamlined and technologically-driven in order to serve the good people of Lagos better.”
He stated that the state government believed that the officials needed to acquire more training so that they could serve residents of the state better.