A viral video has drawn widespread criticism after showing a police officer allegedly demanding either ₦5,000 or five litres of petrol from motorists for failing to present an Electronic Central Motor Registry (ECMR) certificate—despite a nationwide suspension of its enforcement.
The footage, shared on Sunday by user @Teeniiola on X.com, captures the incident along the Benin Bypass, where a police officer is seen stopping a group of travellers and insisting on seeing their ECMR registration.
One of the travellers challenged the officer, stating that enforcement of the ECMR was no longer legal. In response, the officer shrugged off the comment and replied, “You can make call now.”
When the traveller refused to call anyone and instead asked, “What do you want us to do?” the officer said they should provide five litres of fuel, adding, “We’ll go and buy it, that’s 5k.”
The video shows the officer negotiating fuel quantities with others in the group, even telling one traveller to bring three litres.
This incident comes months after the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, suspended ECMR enforcement in July 2024, following public outcry over widespread extortion by officers.
The video has once again spotlighted issues of misconduct and bribery within the Nigeria Police Force.
Responding to the clip, Delta State Police Command spokesperson SP Edafe Bright condemned the officer’s behavior. “My God. Thanks for recording this. Little by little, all the moles will be taken out of the system,” he wrote on X.
“All these policemen bringing shame to us—one by one, they will be sent out of the organisation. Maybe when they become jobless, they’ll go into content creation. This is embarrassing and the force is on it,” he added.
