ON BUS BAN IN ABUJA

It has been over three weeks now since the FCT administration under the leadership of Senator Bala Abdulkadir Mohammed (FCT minister) place ban on private commercial buses operating within the Central Business Districts(CBD) thus restricting their activities to suburbs and outskirt communities like Gwagwalada, Jikoyi area, Dutse to Bwari etc.

Such decision have been influenced by facts accrued from statistics which the FCT administration have been able to take over the months by deploying young graduates who were paid N2500 per day to take and keep record of traffic flow throughout the FCT at various strategic points. These ad hoc staffs must resume at their duty post by 6.00am and close by 7.00pm without being paid transport of any other allowance. Just the allowance: two thousand five hundred naira (N2500) per day. 

It is sure that the decision was based primarily on such facts gathered by underpaid ad hoc staffs that obviously lack satisfaction on the job or perhaps the expertise of carrying out such job effectively. It is crystal clear that inconsistent and incoherent statistical analysis was the basis for the ban. It seems a complete statistical analysis was not made before implementing the ban.  For instance, it is not clear if there any data on human traffic flow within the metropolis exist. I will give you a vivid example why I’m sure such data does not exist. Frequency of El Rufai buses which now replace defunct commercial buses is so unpredictable that in some major areas with high human traffic, it can sometimes take up to four hours before you get another bus after missing one. So the characteristic ninety nine standing like typical ‘Molue’ in Lagos is now observed in Abuja. Few private cars have now converted to commercial cars while transport fare surge depends on the population of commuters. Taxi drop is so expensive and uneconomical especially when you are staying in places far from your work place. So regardless of your status, personality, integrity or self esteem, you must hustle to get whatever transport you are going to take. Peak of such rush is between 7.00am to 8.00am and 4.00pm to 6.00m. Mentioning means of data acquisition is germane to this discussion since it shows how unreliable the gathered information might be.

More disturbing is the increased crime that greeted this gesture from the FCT administration. Today we have increased cases of picking of pocket and taxi robbery. Every time a bus arrives, the rush to get into the bus give room for perpetrators of dastardly act of pocket picking to carry out there nefarious acts. Though, the prevalence is more in certain areas but there is the need to nib this terrible act in the bud by providing enough buses to cater for passengers. Berger area is one of those areas known for such act of pocket picking. So if you are visiting Abuja for the first time anytime soon, watch your pocket closely if you will be passing through Berger. Another common trend is the use of private vehicle to rub passengers their valuables and belongings. Cases of such pilferage of valuables through this means have increased since the ban of buses has been implemented.

The ban of private commercial buses though has its merits and good intentions. What Abuja dwellers experience today to move from place to place within the CBD is not fair.  It is a show of lack of consonance between policy formulation and implementation which has bewitched our governance system as well as her ethics. It is a clarion call to the FCT administration to rise up to the challenge and fox the problem of transportation in the FCT.