Kwara State Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq on Tuesday received 20 gas-powered buses and 20 tricycles from the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative (PCNGI) — another fruitful effort to ease mass transit in the state.
Speaking in Ilorin at the handover ceremony of the vehicles, the Governor said the initiative forms part of the government’s efforts to cushion the effects of fuel subsidy removal on the populace.
AbdulRazaq thanked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the leadership of the PCNGi, and his own team for making steady progress in this regard.
The ceremony was attended by Deputy Governor Kayode Alabi; members Kwara House of Assembly led by the Speaker, Rt Hon Yakubu Salihu Danladi; Kwara State Chief Judge Justice Abiodun Adebara; Grand Kadi Shari’ah Court of Appeal Justice Abdullateef Kamaldeen; cabinet members; State APC Chairman Prince Sunday Fagbemi; Executive Vice Chairman, P-CNG, Mr Toyin Zubair; CEO B One Mobility Limited, Mr Atul Saraf; and transport workers.
“As our country navigates the gradual shift to cleaner energy in the wake of fuel subsidy removal, we are today taking delivery of 20 gas-powered buses and 20 tricycles from the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative (PCNGI),” he said.
“This is another strategic partnership between our government, private sector players, and the Federal Government to bring ease to our people.
“These 18-seater shuttle buses and tricycles will be deployed to support the public transport system at a discounted cost to the people.”
The Governor said the government is also partnering with B-One Mobility Limited, which is setting up an assembly plant for gas-powered tricycles in the state.
The partnership offers huge socioeconomic benefits for the people of the state in the area of job creation, poverty reduction, and affordable and clean transport system, the Governor added.
Zubair, for his part, said Kwara is one of the states that have keyed into the CNG initiative and assured the state of the federal government’s strong partnership, especially with huge investment in the establishment of more conversion centres.
He said the target of the federal government was to convert about 1 million vehicles from petrol to CNG and appreciated Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq for being one of the pillars behind the transformative agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu
Saraf said the programme will create 5,000 direct and 9,500 indirect employment opportunities, adding “our vision extends far beyond job creation. We are introducing a holistic mobility ecosystem solution that includes utility vehicles, garbage tippers, ambulances, and fire fighting equipment- CNG tractors”.
He commended the President’s vision and unwavering belief in Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) technology, saying “his forward-thinking approach has created the enabling environment for such transformative investments”.
