Laide Raheem, Abeokuta
In furtherance of its resolve to make life easier for the residents, the Ogun State government has commenced moves towards ensuring safety of commuters and drastic reduction in the cost of transportation in the state.
The State Commissioner for Transportation, Olugbenga Dairo, made this disclosure in Abeokuta during separate meetings with representatives of Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria (RTEAN) and Tricycle Owners Association of Nigeria (TOAN), Ogun State chapters.
The meeting was to address all transport unions and associations following the resolution of the State House of Assembly banning activities of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in the State.
Dairo said government was poised to change the narratives by establishing a rule-based process in regulating all activities in the state transport sector.
He explained that the recent creation of his ministry is in demonstration of government’s readiness to rid the sector of exploitation, hooliganism, gangsterism and other social vices associated with the sector.
“We have a clear mandate of establishing a process-based, rules-based and organised transport system that is concerned with the safety and welfare of service users, who are the number one stakeholders above every other interest. In this regard, we shall put all the precautionary measures in place towards ensuring safety and regulated transport fare through an organised and acceptable modus operandi so as to help make transportation affordable and life more meaningful for the people of the State”, the Commissioner explained.
He added that the “state government will ensure that all transport operators and unions in the state abide by its rules and regulations, and operate as responsible corporate citizens with sound governance structures and zero tolerance for extortion of commuters through arbitrary increase in transport fares, harassment and other unprofessional acts within and outside the parks and garages”.
Dairo, however, called for the cooperation of all transport unions, operators and other stakeholders in the transport sector across the state, stressing government placed high premium on the development and improvement of the state transport system.
In his own remarks, the State Chairman of RTEAN, Titilayo Akibu, pleaded with the state government to renovate all the parks and garages in the state as they are all in dilapidated shapes.
He also sought for government financial support through facilitation of affordable loans to promote and develop transportation business in the state.
Akibu further commended government’s decision to create the Ministry of Transportation as a way of transforming the sector, promising loyalty and strict adherence to government’s policies and directives to enhance sanity in the system.