Plateau launches device to check car documents

The Plateau State Government at the weekend launched the first USSD validator to verify the genuineness of vehicle documents and certificates in a bid to curbing forgery and weed out unlicensed drivers.

The USSD validator is expected to assist the Vehicle Inspection Officers (VIO) and Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) to validate whether vehicle particulars are genuinely registered and issued in Plateau or not, as well as check the amount paid for the particulars and their expiry dates.

The Executive Director of Plateau State Board of Internal Revenue Service, Dashe Arlat said the USSD validator, otherwise known as quick codes, was the first of its kind in Nigeria, adding, “People forge our receipts and our security men such as the VIO, road safety and the Police hardly know which one is genuine. This will reduce argument between law enforcement agents and motorists because with a simple click on your phone, your status can be ascertained.”

The Plateau State chief VIO, John Gaya, said the technology would enhance their work and ensure that problems associated with vehicle documentations were resolved once and for all, adding, “Fraudsters will no longer have a hiding place in Plateau State.”

Earlier, the Commissioner for Finance, Tamwakat Weli, said the new technology would boost the internally generated revenue of the state and ensure that tax administration was carried out seamlessly while improving friendly interface between tax payers and tax authorities.