The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has strongly condemned the planned resumption of enforcement of the tinted glass permit policy by the Nigeria Police Force, described it as a grave affront to the authority of the courts and a clear subversion of the rule of law.
In a press release signed by its President, Mazi Afam Osigwe, the NBA faulted a statement issued on 15 December 2025 by the Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Benjamin Hundeyin, which announced that enforcement of the suspended tinted glass permit policy would resume on 2 January 2026.
According to the NBA, the announcement directly contradicted subsisting court proceedings and solemn undertakings made by the Police before the Federal High Court, Abuja, thereby portraying the Police leadership as exhibiting “a troubling disregard for due process and constitutional democracy.”
The association recalled that in April 2025, the Inspector General of Police (IGP) introduced a policy requiring motorists to obtain annual tinted glass permits through an online platform, with reports of harassment, extortion and rights violations quickly following its attempted enforcement.
In response, the NBA, through its Section on Public Interest and Development Law (NBA-SPIDEL), filed Suit No: FHC/ABJ/CS/1821/2025 at the Federal High Court, Abuja, challenging the legality and constitutionality of the policy. The suit questioned the Police’s authority to impose fees on citizens and alleged that the policy was extortionate, unconstitutional and economically burdensome.
The NBA further cited an order of the Federal High Court, Warri Division, in a related suit, directing parties to maintain the status quo and restraining the Police from enforcing the policy pending the determination of an interlocutory application.
Following public outcry and court intervention, the NBA said the IGP met with senior lawyers, including several Senior Advocates of Nigeria, and representatives of the association, where it was agreed that enforcement of the policy would be suspended pending the outcome of the court cases.
At proceedings before the Federal High Court, Abuja, on 12 December 2025, counsel to the Police, Chief Ayotunde Ogunleye, SAN, informed the court of the agreement suspending enforcement. On the strength of that undertaking, the court struck out the pending motion for interlocutory injunction.
The NBA said it was therefore “deeply disturbing” that barely one working day later, the Police announced a reactivation of the policy, describing the move as contemptuous, reckless and capable of undermining judicial authority.
“The statement made in open court constituted a binding judicial undertaking,” the NBA said, warned that any contrary executive action amounts to overreaching the court, contrary to established Supreme Court authority.
The association called on the IGP to immediately withdraw the statement announcing the resumption of enforcement and to halt all actions relating to the tinted glass permit policy until final judgments are delivered in all pending cases.
It also directed all NBA branches and its Human Rights Committee to provide free legal representation to any citizen harassed, arrested or prosecuted under the policy, vowed not to allow intimidation or abuse under what it described as an unlawful regime.
The NBA warned that if the Police fail to comply, it will initiate committal proceedings for contempt against the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, and the Force Public Relations Officer, while also pursuing professional sanctions against any counsel found to have misled the court.
The association further appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to intervene and call the Police leadership to order, warned that enforcement of the policy at this stage would impose unjustified financial hardship on Nigerians and amount to a direct insult to the judiciary.
