Subsidy: Oyo Plans Salary Increase, Slashes Bus Fare

The Oyo State Government, on Wednesday, announced a 50 per cent reduction in the fare for the Pace Setter Transport Service to cushion the effect of fuel subsidy removal on the general public.

The state Head of Service, Olubunmi Oni, who made this announcement while playing host to the leadership of the state chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress led by its Chairman, Kayode Martins, at the secretariat, Agodi, Ibadan, said with the limited resources available, the government would continue to make life more bearable for the teeming masses, especially the workers.

She said, “The government has started deploying more buses through the transport service to take people from one place to another with 50 percentage reduction as part of the efforts to cushion the effect of the fuel subsidy removal on the general public.”

Oni assured the NLC that the current administration under the leadership of Governor Seyi Makinde would continue to prioritise workers’ welfare to cushion the effect of the removal of fuel subsidy.

The HoS stressed that Makinde had started working on the new minimum wage for all workers in the state, adding that, the government was looking at all possible ways to reduce the suffering of the downtrodden.

She said, “We are lucky in this state that we have a listening governor. We have a governor that sees civil service as his constituency. With this, the state will be far better than any other state in Nigeria on minimum wage.”

Earlier, the NLC Chairman disclosed that for the first time, the government was calling the labour union to review the salary upward.

He then appreciated the government for prioritising workers’ welfare, and promised that the union would not relent to ensure that the minimum wage is done on time as well as palliative measures for all workers in the state.