When President Bola Ahmed Tinubu announced the removal of petrol subsidy at the inception of his administration in 2023, a lot of challenges accompanied that otherwise worthwhile policy. Prominent among those hiccups in the system was an escalation in the cost of transportation which impacted on other sectors of the economy.
There was a resounding public outcry that required immediate intervention to assuage the the pains brought about by that policy. In response, the president unveiled several measures to mitigate its negative effect on the life of ordinary Nigerians.
He promised to roll out buses across the states and local governments for mass transit at a much more affordable rate and also made provision for N100 billion as investment in the transportation sector between then and March 2024 which will involve the acquisition of 3,000 units of 20-seater Compressed Natural Gas (CNG)-fuelled buses.
The buses were to be shared to major transportation companies in the states, using the intensity of travel per capital. The participating companies were to access credit under the facility at an interest of nine percent per annum with 60 months repayment period.
Furthermore, the government launched an Initiative to open up CNG conversion centres nationwide for motorists to convert their petrol-driven vehicles to gas-powered automobiles.
As part of the implementation of the programme, the government introduced a portal to allow users to convert their petrol-powered vehicles to CNG with an option to pay-later for the conversion costs.
The National Orientation Agency (NOA) which announced the measures said the payment system would allow drivers convert their vehicles now and pay later through affordable monthly instalments at competitive rates.
In its recent update on the implementation of the CNG conversion project, the Presidential CNG Initiative, claimed that over 100,000 vehicles had been converted from petrol to CNG/bi-fuel.
It asserted that more conversion centres were springing up across the country.
The presidential team also asserted that investors were ramping up the development and deployment of CNG infrastructure, with over $200 million already invested across the value chain. It added that 140 conversion centres had been opened across the country.
As a newspaper, we beg to differ on some of these lavish claims because the facts at our disposal do not support them.
A recent media report revealed that only a handful of states have conversion centres.
Even the ones launched by the presidential team in Akwa Ibom and Ekiti States are yet to take off. It is only in Abuja and Lagos that the programme has gained a measure of popularity and acceptance among motorists, who can afford the high conversion costs.
For instance, in the whole of the South-South region, the only functioning centre is in Edo State; others are only evolving. Kwara State in the North Central zone has four centres but two are operational. In the entire North West and North East zones, only Kaduna State has two operational centres while the one in Kano State is at the take-off stage.
In the whole of the South East, only a private company has initiated the process in Nnewi in Anambra State.
We, therefore, appeal to the Presidential CNG Initiative managers to make public the 140 functioning centres for access to the motoring public who claimed that the conversion stations are not in their states.
In our opinion, Nigeria’s ambitious plan to convert petrol-powered vehicles to CNG has hit a snag.
Apart from its poor implementation, the cost of conversion is prohibitively expensive, ranging from N700,000 for a vehicle of four cylinders to N1.5 million for an 8-cylinder vehicle, putting it out of reach for most Nigerian motorists. This is a major hurdle, as the policy’s primary target is the average Nigerian driver.
Similarly, the funding arrangement for motorists to convert their vehicles is opaque.
The ultimate beneficiaries do not know anything about it. Most of them are not aware of the portal purportedly opened for them to register.
The disbursing agents and agencies are also not known. It is our belief that the transport operators in Nigeria are well-organised under various unions for the government to deal with under this programme.
Sadly, as the government or its implementing agency continues to blow their trumpet and roll out its achievements, Nigerians are groaning under heavy transportation burden.
Transport fares have gone haywire that some workers have been forced to resign their appointments in far locations from their homes because their salaries cannot take care of the fares.
Also parents have withdrawn their children from schools to neighbouring ones irrespective of their standards.
To salvage the CNG initiative, the government should overhaul its implementation strategy.
We call for a transparent funding system that enable interested motorists to access the funds dedicated for the conversion exercise.
We also appeal to the government to reduce the conversion costs, especially for rural motorists and commercial transporters, to bring down fares.
The government should equally strengthen its partnership with the private sector to build more conversion centres across the country.
Under this arrangement, the government should aim for at least one centre in each of the 774 local government areas to increase accessibility
There should also be a public awareness campaign to educate Nigerians on the benefits of CNG conversion to address certain misconceptions surrounding it and promote its adoption
By addressing these challenges, both the government and the citizens will reap the benefits of CNG which include reduced fuel costs, improved environmental quality, and enhanced energy security. These are too significant to be ignored. It’s time for the government to reassess its approach and make this policy work for the Nigerian people.
Since, CNG is approximately 40 percent cheaper than petrol, its full adoption has the capacity to reduce fuel costs for transportation and potentially decrease the prices of goods and services.
The utilisation of Nigeria’s abundant natural gas reserves will enhance energy independence and reduce reliance on imported petroleum products.
In the meantime, we believe that Nigeria’s CNG conversion initiative is a forward-thinking solution to the challenges posed by fuel subsidy removal. With careful planning, investment, and public engagement, the programme can yield significant economic, environmental, and social benefits. We, therefore, urge all stakeholders to support it.
