Palliative: Makinde introduces buses, cuts fare for workers, pensioners, varsity students

Governor of Oyo State, Engnr. Seyi Makinde has announced that the number of Omi Tuntun buses will be increased and fares reduced for pensioners, students and oyo state workers.

He made this announcement during his broadcast to Oyo state residents, Friday as part of his economic recovery plans to reduce the impact of the fuel subsidy removal.

In addition to increasing the number of buses, Engnr. Makinde also said the Omituntun buses will increase the number of routes they cover to further ease the movement of Oyo state people.

According to the governor, his administration will update the social register to include two hundred thousand (200,000) of the poorest of the poor.

“These will be provided with immediate food relief packages. As usual, we will ensure transparency in the registration process so that only those who qualify will get this immediate relief.

“We will be providing health insurance for 100,000 of our most vulnerable citizens. We will be paying their one-year health insurance premium under the Oyo State Health Insurance Agency (OYSHIA) scheme so that they have access to quality healthcare without paying out of pocket.

“The Omituntun Bus service will be extended to cover inter-city routes from Ibadan to all other zones of Oyo State. Details of their routes will be released in the coming weeks. So, we will have buses going from Ibadan to Ibarapa, Ibadan to Ogbomoso, Ibadan to Oke-Ogun and Ibadan to Oyo. The fares will be kept at low rates, while our senior citizens and students will board the buses at half price.

“Our farmers have not been left out. To ensure food security, we will be distributing additional inputs to 10,000 farmers. This is in addition to the input support being provided under the World Bank assisted OYS-CARES programme. Further details will be released through the relevant agencies in the coming weeks.

“Our youth agropreneurs who were trained under the Youth Entrepreneurship in Agribusiness Project (YEAP) and have established businesses will also have an opportunity to contribute to food security and sustainable development as they will receive enterprise support of five hundred million naira (N500,000,000) under the SAfER package. They will get further directives on how they will benefit from the relevant agencies.

“We have also resolved to assist small businesses to stay afloat through low-interest-rate loans with the provision of five hundred million naira (N500,000,000) facility. Our traders, artisans and other small business operators can apply for these loans through designated micro-finance banks. Details of how they may enroll for and access these loans will be announced by the relevant agencies.

“Tertiary institution students in Oyo State will board the Omituntun Buses at half price upon showing their school identity card. We will also be meeting with the student leaders of tertiary institutions in Oyo State to agree on further measures which will be added to the SAfER package for students.