5th January, 2012
Residents of Jalingo, the Taraba capital, have decided to stay at home because of the sharp rise in transport fare occasioned by the fuel subsidy removal.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) checks at motor parks on Wednesday, revealed that the usually busy parks were almost empty.
Some transporters told NAN that they could load only one or two buses a day as against eight to nine vehicles previously.
The few passengers seen around expressed dismay over the development, describing the challenges confronting Nigerians so early in the year as “unthinkable.â€
Mr. John Tanko, a passenger, told NAN that he had bought a ticket to travel to Lagos at N10,000 compared to the previous price of N5,500, adding that passengers were not coming forth.
“It is frustrating; I have been here since morning; but the vehicle is not yet full and I don’t know when it will.’’
In an interview with NAN, Ahaji Abubakar Tanko, the Secretary, National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in the state, blamed the lack of passengers on the fuel subsidy removal.
Tanko urged the government to consider the plight of the people and do something about the development.
Meanwhile, most of the filling stations in Jalingo were still shut, while the few selling products witnessed low patronage due to the high cost of petrol which is N160 per litre.