IGP suspends e-CMR enforcement for vehicle owners and orders comprehensive clarification

Following public protests, the Inspector General of Police, IGP Olukayode Egbetokun, has ordered the suspension of the planned introduction of the Electronic Central Register of Motor Vehicles (e-CMR) for vehicle owners in the country.

The IGP also directed that officers of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) should conduct comprehensive education of all Nigerians on the importance of the digital registration initiative before enforcement begins.

The Force PRO, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, announced the suspension in a statement on Monday morning, saying: “The Inspector General of Police, IGP Kayode Egbetokun, has ordered an immediate suspension of the scheduled enforcement of the e-CMR, which was originally scheduled to commence on July 29, 2024.

“This is intended to give all citizens and residents sufficient opportunity to obtain comprehensive information and education on the approach, advantages and effectiveness in solving the problem of vehicle crime and on protecting the vehicle assets of private individuals and companies.

“The public is urged to obtain the digitized CMR certificate online at https://cmris.npf.gov.ng. For further queries, individuals may contact the 24/7 hotline (02018870133), CMR Command Centre at FHQ Abuja (08117777666, 09169892000) and FHQ Annex Lagos (08117777555, 09169891000). Technical support is also available at (email protected).”

The Force PRO further stated: “It is against this backdrop that we seek the understanding and support of all well-meaning Nigerians and residents to log into the e-CMR system. It is in this spirit that the IGP calls on all police officers to stop requesting e-CMR certificates as persons who extort or exploit members of the public under the pretext of not having e-CMR certificates will be punished accordingly as enforcement which will only be carried out by dedicated officers has been suspended until further notice.”

It is worth noting that e-CMR provides the police with a first-hand database to curb traffic crimes as dedicated officers can access comprehensive data on each vehicle in real time via their tablets.

Similarly, the e-CMR will prevent multiple registration of vehicles and serve as a database for collecting biometric and other data of vehicle owners and individuals, adding value to the national database and the accident reporting portal of other ministries, departments and authorities for general safety.