Lagos task force rejects claim over Tacoma inscription stop

The Lagos State Environmental and Special Offences Unit has denied involvement in an incident in which a Toyota Tacoma driver alleged that officials stopped him over an inscription on his vehicle and demanded a permit. The allegation was made in a video posted on Facebook by Jay Scotch Automobile Ltd. In the video, the motorist said officials challenged the “TRD 4×4 Sport Tacoma” marking, arguing that it amounted to advertising.

He said they requested a permit and threatened to damage the vehicle’s side mirror if he did not produce one. The driver said the inscription was not added for promotional purposes, but came with the vehicle when it was purchased in the United States. He questioned why permission would be required for the marking on the Tacoma.

However, Raheem Gbadeyanka, the Task Force’s Director of Press and Public Affairs, said the agency was not responsible for the encounter. He said residents often mistake officers from different government agencies for Task Force personnel, particularly when they see officials wearing camouflage uniforms. Gbadeyanka also said the Task Force no longer enforces traffic-related offences following a directive from the Lagos State Commissioner of Police.

According to him, its officers had stopped arresting traffic offenders and could not stop vehicles for traffic offences under the leadership of the agency’s chairman, CSP Adebayo Akerele. He added that requesting permits for vehicle inscriptions was outside the Task Force’s mandate. The incident comes amid Lagos regulation of branded vehicles by the Lagos State Signage and Advertisement Agency, which lists car, truck and bike branding under its Mobile Branding Permit system.

The Task Force nevertheless maintained that its officers were not involved and had no authority to demand such a permit.