Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s presidential candidate, lauded the Federal Government on Friday for considering collaborating with a few big transportation companies to subsidize interstate travel costs for Nigerians visiting during the holiday season.
On Wednesday, the FG declared that during the holiday season, transportation expenses along 22 interstate routes will be lowered by 50%.
The announcement was given to State House media at the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja by Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Mr. Dele Alake, who also served as the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Presidential Intervention’s chair.
Segun Falade, a representative for the National Union of Road Transport Workers, reaffirmed that the union will start implementing the fare subsidies the following Thursday.
According to Alake, President Bola Tinubu ordered that commuters on all train services have free trips from December 21, 2023, to January 4, 2024. The 50% ticket cut was negotiated with luxury bus firms.
In response to the news, Obi expressed gratitude for the mass-assistance initiative in a post on his X (formerly Twitter) account on Friday. He called it a positive move in the right way.
The former governor of Anambra State, however, voiced worry that there were no safeguards in place to guarantee compliance, claiming that his observations at significant national parks revealed that the transporters were not abiding by the terms of the agreement.
“If fully implemented, as reported, I consider this first-time government intervention aimed at helping the masses to be a step in the right direction,” the man tweeted.
The main issue with these emergency measures, though, is what happens afterwards. Everyone is aware of the exorbitant expense of transportation and the difficulties it causes.
What occurs after the holiday season is the question this seasonal palliative addresses. Exists a long-term policy to protect the general public from the exorbitant prices of transportation as it stands today? There are operational difficulties with even the existing endeavor.
Millions of individuals have already traveled, shouldering the heavy burden and exorbitant expenses associated with it. How will these individuals be paid or receive their refunds?
“I have taken the time to look into the mechanics of implementation across multiple places following the government’s declaration of a 50% discount on interstate transit tickets for Nigerians, but I have been let down.
“Today, I reached out to people who conducted extensive consultations with the transporters in major parks throughout the nation. They conducted on-the-spot investigations in Jabi and Utako areas in Abuja and visited Jibowu, Festac, Mile 12, Ajah, and Mazamaza in Lagos, and none of the transporters there knew about this fifty percent discount.
“The situation is the same in other parts of the country like Kano, Aba, Kaduna, Owerri, and Gombe, as well as at Upper Iweka, Onitsha, which is the main traffic hub in Anambra.”
The LP presidential candidate went on to say that he regretted the fact that a noble attempt like this might be purposefully twisted to make things worse for the general populace.
In the wake of the alleged manipulation, he also challenged the Federal Government (FG) to clarify that their 50% involvement wasn’t only a “spin” to fool Nigerians.
“There are clear concerns regarding this intervention’s credibility. It makes sense that transportation firms will collaborate with policymakers to create a policy that targets the general public, particularly the oppressed.
“I hope this isn’t just another ploy to gain favor with the media after swaying the public opinion. The government of Nigeria cannot continue to ignore the immense misery that the people of Nigeria are enduring.
He said, “Government compassion is a good thing, but it shouldn’t be used as a cover for taking advantage of the government’s inadequacies in order to promote opaque policy implementation.”
