‘We can’t cope’, Abuja Civil servants abandon their vehicles over fuel hike
Civil servants in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) now pack their vehicles and use public transportation due to the high cost of fuel, a News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) survey reveals.
Some of them who spoke to NAN in Abuja on Sunday said it is cheaper to use public transportation than to use personal vehicles to work and other engagements.
Mrs Elizabeth Ekwere (pseudo name), civil servant, said she decided to pack her vehicle as it was no longer sustainable to use it with the current pump price of fuel and her meagre salary.
Ekwere who said it was cheaper to use public transportation, said she had also reduced the number of days she went to work to avoid going into debt.
”Every week I drive my car to work, I spend nothing less than N100,000 on fuel alone. I have not talked about the food I and the children eat. When I bought the fuel for two weeks, I told myself the truth that I cannot continue.
“I had to pack the vehicle because I cannot continue to spend huge amount of money on a daily basis which will result to me living above my means.
“Now, with the permission of my superiors in the office, we go to work two times in a week depending on your schedules,” she said.
Mr Festus Ugwu, a public servant, said his vehicle which he usually packed every work day was being used only on Sunday to take his family to church.
Ugwu said although he was afraid of the activities of ‘one chance’ group, he was using public transportation to cut cost.
He appealed to the Federal Government to pay minimum wage and other allowances to help cushion the effect of the fuel pump price hike on workers. Using car is a luxury now because you pay through your nose to maintain it.
”One has to calculate very well before driving to any place now because it is not wisdom to spend all your earnings on fuel,” he said.
Caroline Ade, also a civil servant, said the increase in fuel pump price had forced many citizens to live like people abroad.
Ade, who said that many workers living abroad used train transportation to and fro work, appealed to the government to revive the train system for a more reliable and sustainable transportation network.
Mr Emeka Eluagu, another public servant, said the Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) initiative of the Federal Government, when fully implemented, would help cut transportation cost for workers.
Eluagu appealed to the government to ensure effective support to enable the CNG initiative to work.
“I do not think that we are prepared for this CNG thing because I saw a video where someone’s CNG car exploded.
“The government needs to take this CNG thing seriously as an alternative to this fuel hike,” he said.
Aisha Mahmoud, also a civil servant advised the government to introduce govt-owned buses to help convey workers and other citizens to their destination at a cheaper rate.
Mahmoud said the initiative would help cushion the effect of the high cost of fuel and also reduce activities of one chance groups in the FCT.
”Many people are now selling off their fuel consuming vehicles to go for the ones that have fuel economy,” she said.
NAN reports that a litre of fuel is now being sold between N1,030 and N1,400. (NAN)
