Passengers Benefit From Tinubu’s Transportation Palliative
Passengers Benefit From Tinubu’s Transportation Palliative
No fewer than 128 Nigerians leaving Abuja to other parts of the country have benefited from President Bola Ahmed Tinibu’s Renewed Hope transportation discount on Christmas Day.
A statement by the Director of Press and Public Relations, Ministry of Transport, Olujimi Oyetomi has said, adding that the exercise is going on across the nation to reduce the cost of transport burden on Nigerians during the holiday.
The statement reads, “Implementing the directive of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s 50% discount on transport fares for Nigerians during the yuletide got a serious boost especially as 128 travellers from Abuja to various destinations in the North – Gombe, Bauchi, Yola and Maiduguri only paid half of their transport fares.
The video:
It said that the Federal Ministry of Transportation (FMT) Situation Room monitored the development on Christmas Day, 25th of December, 2023.
“The north bound passengers got immediate reimbursement of 50% of the transport fares paid upon boarding their vehicles, by the Chairman of the Association of Luxury Bus Owners (ALBON)’s Task Force on the Implementation of the discount, Chief Clement Okuefuna who personally conducted the disbursement in cash at the Area 1 Motor Park from where most of the buses which conveyed the passengers took off on Christmas day, 25th of December, 2023,” it said.
It explained that since the routes to the north were mostly serviced by low-capacity vehicles as opposed to high-capacity luxury vehicles, ALBON has initiated a work arrangement with the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), FCT Chapter to service the routes.
ALBON also made good its promise to publicise venues for boarding the vehicles where passengers could be reimbursed 50% of the fares paid.
“Starting from as early as 5am on Christmas Day, four 16-seater capacity buses began loading, their passengers given back half of the fares paid and despatched to Gombe from Area 1 Park in Abuja. One 16-seater capacity bus was loaded with travellers who also got the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s discount of 50% and despatched for Bauchi. Additional loaded and headed for Yola while yet another loaded and headed for Maiduguri.
The last 16-seater passenger bus which loaded, got its passenger refunded half of the transport fares paid back to them and heading for Bauchi and Maiduguri rounded off the operation at Area 1 Motor Park, Abuja. Thus, eight (8) buses loaded with 16 passengers each, totalling 128 (One Hundred and Twenty-Eight cheerful Nigerians got refunded half of transport fares they paid, courtesy of the directive and provisions made for the special period of Christmas (2023) and New Year (palliative ending on January, 4th, 2024). It was therefore no wonder to hear the politically conscious northern Nigerians cheering and chanting “Jagaban, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, 4 plus 4”, even when the intention of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR in directing the transport palliative wasn’t towards a political end, but to renew hopes for a better Nigeria,” the statement emphasised.
