Business
How ‘Leggedes’ Emerged King Of Lagos Roads
The taste of the pudding, an adage has it, is in the eating.
Many well-meaning Nigerians were clamouring for the removal of subsidy on Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), famous in Nigeria as petrol, because the subsidy regime was laced with corruption, while enriching few privileged and unscrupulous business people.
Efforts by several successive governments, including military regimes, could not summon enough courage to put an end to the menace. Why? It was always met with stiff resistance from the masses.
The fear of mass revolt and resistance discouraged several governments from taking the bull by the horn, despite counsel from well-informed and well-meaning individuals and organisations, including the World Bank.
However, the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration has bitten the bullet.
The date, May 29 has come to be known in Nigeria as democracy day.
However, when President Tinubu welcomed himself to office on May 29, 2023 with the stern announcement ‘subsidy is gone’, the day transformed into the day hardship was born to many people.
It was first greeted with confusion, which saw several filling stations shutdown; then an adjustment of the pump prices of petrol from N180 to N490 per litre in the Lagos area.
The removal of subsidy also saw marketers selling at different prices in different parts of Nigeria, with prices per litre, ranging from N490 to N750.
The signal, meant a new day, indeed a day of adversity to many Nigerians. But it appears that the people are confronting the demon with tenets in Robert H Schuller’s bestseller, “Tough Times Never Last, But Tough People Do”.
All over the world, Nigerians are famous for courage and their ‘can do spirit’. So it appears that with the shock, Nigerians quickly swung to survival modes.
Consequently, the unveiling of tough times by President Tinubu has seen Nigerians mutate to their tough sides. After all, life must go on.
How People in the Lagos Area Are Adapting
In the Lagos area, the working class have resorted to hibernating, rotation, trekking, skipping meals, cooking at the office, two-or-three-day working week, remote working, e-trading, among others, to keep themselves going.
An administrative manager with a manufacturing concern in the Ikeja area of Lagos State, Elendu Uwarue, lives in Gowon Estate, Ipaja.
He copes with the subsidy removal which has seen transportation cost from his house to office move from N800 to N2500 per day by hibernating.
He said, “I commute twice a week, Mondays and Fridays. I leave for the office very early, so that I can join those who hustle with their private cars at affordable rates on Monday.
“I hibernate at the office till Friday when I also make sure that I leave late to ensure that I don’t spend too much on transportation.”
In a related situation, a banker, Tosin Olaito, informed Biztellers that in her department, they have fallen back to survival instincts and resorted to rotation.
What this means according to Olaito, is that, not everyone has to be physically on duty every day.
A department of 10 people can opt to have three or four people on seat to take on the day’s tasks. Others can support remotely.
For those who have been wondering why several banking halls are sparsely populated by employees, this might be one of the reasons.
“We agree among ourselves who should be physically present and who can be sending in in-swingers. On the day you’re to support from your location, you will quickly go the branch nearest to your house and sign-in, and you’re good to go,” she said.
Transporters Lament
Biztellers reports that transporters are lamenting because the prevailing economic situation does not permit them to adjust charges to cover escalating costs from the subsidy removal.
A transporter, Segun Olawuyi, took to his Facebook page to lament that while cost of petrol, a major input for the business has gone up by over 300 percent, they are only able to increase charges by 50-100 percent in some cases.
Olawuyi wrote, “This is not a good time for transport business. Imagine paying three times what you used to, for petrol only to charge about 100 percent what you used to.”
Biztellers’ investigations revealed that fares have increased, albeit marginally in some cases. There are some extreme cases where no increase has been recorded at all.
For instance, a shuttle within the Ikeja business district used to be N100 per trip in commercial buses, say from Ikeja under-bridge to Alausa-Secretariat-Express. But it has increased to N150 per trip.
Another transporter, Olopo Andy told Biztellers that they had to reduce the fare from N200 to N150 when they noticed that majority of the people turned to ‘legging it’ instead of riding in the buses.
“Oga na leggedes be king now o. Since (President) Tinubu enter, na so, so trek people dey trek o. We no dey see passenger carry again,” he lamented.
Biztellers observed that several people were trekking the estimated four-six-kilometer distance between Express-Ikeja-Along through Awolowo Road to Express-Alausa area.
Walking long distances to and from work, business locations and other places has become increasingly popular with the people having no choice.
Some people have been asserting, albeit jokingly that those trekking in Nigeria because of hardship would soon earn her a world record in the Guinness World Records (GWR).
General impact
The greatest impact of the fuel subsidy removal might yet be in the in the mounting angst among the populace. Everything imaginable has seen their prices jumped through the roof, including foodstuffs. This has left the populace irritable.
People are lamenting everywhere about economic hardship. The public outcry doesn’t seem to be heading anywhere near the ears of those in power with fears becoming palpable that any little thing can ignite public outrage of uncontrollable measures.
However, a public affairs analyst, Charles Ikewe told Biztellers that it doesn’t all have to do with the subsidy.
“There was hardship before President Tinubu was sworn in,” he started. “What is evident,” he continued, “is that things have gone from bad to worse, which the masses can longer bear.”
He traced it to previous governments who could not make bold and timely policy pronouncements.
The cumulative result from Ikewe’s perspective might be best expressed in the words of a former American President, Abraham Lincoln, “You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.”
As things stand, the removal of subsidy on petrol has enthroned ‘leggedess’ as king of Nigerian roads, but only time will tell how long it would be and how the people react to it.
Following the marginal reduction of the pump prices of premium motor spirit (PMS) by the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and the Nigerian National Petrol Company Limited (NNPC Ltd), civil society groups have reacted by calling for further downward review.
Recall that the Dangote Petroleum Refinery had announced a partnership with MRS Oil and Gas to offer petrol at N935 per litre at retail outlets, while it reviewed the ex-depot price from N970 to N899.50 per litre.
The move, saw state oil major, the Nigeria National Petroleum Company peg its retail prices at N965/litre.
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However, the civil society groups are of the opinion that the price reduction, fall short of expectations.
According to the Chairman, Centre for Accountability and Open Leadership, Debo Adeniran, the reduced price of N935/litre was still expensive and unsatisfactory.
He pointed out that petrol was just one of the products coming out of crude and that both government and private business could still give out free petrol to citizens while making huge profits from the other products.
In his words, “Well, we believe that if NNPC and the private sector actually give out PMS for free, they will still not run their business at a loss, because the other derivatives of petroleum products can still serve them, and can still make them to break even. So, even at that N900 and something, it’s still expensive.
“Dangote has kind of mooted the idea that it could drop to as low as N650. And if he has mulled this, then it means that it is the state, it is the NNPC that will have been the clog in the wheel of such progress. And you know also that we expected that fuel prices, especially PMS prices, will drop below N200 when Dangote was expected to come on stream.
“So, it’s unfortunate that we are still talking about over N900 and they want us to jump up and rejoice for that. That is not satisfactory. They should just let us see the breakdown of their production cost and why it’s still there. I mean, there are countries like Libya under Gaddafi that gave out PMS for free and they didn’t run anything at any loss. So, I believe that it can still go further down.”
On his part, the Executive Director of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, Ibrahim Rafsanjani, commended the reduction of fuel prices by the NNPC and Dangote, but said the government could still reduce the price.
“Dangote’s own is about N899 or something like that. Well first and foremost, we are happy that there is a little reduction in the prices. But also based on analysis and based on facts and evidences, we believe that it is possible for the Nigerian government to further reduce the prices.
“Because if a private company can reduce the price and it still makes profit, we wonder why government-owned enterprises cannot really pity its citizens,” he said.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has announced a significant growth in the country’s economy, with a 3.46% increase in gross domestic product (GDP) in the third quarter of 2024.
This marks the third consecutive quarter of expansion, up from 3.19% in Q2 2024 and 2.54% in Q3 2023.
According to the newly published Q3 economic report, Nigeria’s GDP output rose to ₦20.115 trillion, reflecting a notable improvement from ₦18.285 trillion in the previous quarter.
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The CBN attributed this growth primarily to the performance of the non-oil sector, which grew by 3.37% compared to 2.80% in Q2 2024.
The report highlighted transportation, crop production, and other sub-sectors such as financial & insurance services, information & communication, trade, and real estate as major contributors to the expansion.
The non-oil sector accounted for 3.18 percentage points of the total growth rate.
“The expansion of the non-oil sector was driven by the performance of the financial & insurance, information & communication, crop production, trade, transportation & storage, and real estate sub-sectors,” the report stated.
Despite the economic growth, challenges persist. Inflation, particularly in food prices, remains a significant concern, standing at 39.93% as of November 2024.
Rising food and energy costs have also impacted transportation expenses, with intercity bus fares increasing by 20.23% year-on-year to ₦7,117.17 in July 2024, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
Furthermore, the cost of petroleum, now exceeding ₦1,000 per litre, has driven up logistics and transportation expenses, adding pressure to households and businesses alike.
The CBN acknowledged these challenges, noting that the growth was achieved despite headwinds such as high inflation and rising operational costs.
Enhanced security measures in the Niger Delta have boosted domestic crude oil production, while restrictive monetary policies have helped moderate inflation in some areas.
“The growth recorded in the country is a result of continued efforts to improve the business environment, streamline cumbersome business processes, and deepen the quality of business infrastructure,” the CBN noted.
However, the report comes amid concerns over businesses exiting Nigeria due to persistent economic challenges.
Asharami Synergy, a leading downstream energy solutions provider, has demonstrated its commitment to community development and education by donating essential furniture to Gaskiya Junior School in Ijora, Lagos, Nigeria.
Biztellers reports that the social responsibility initiative was executed in collaboration with Sahara Group Foundation – the social impact vehicle of global energy conglomerate, Sahara Group.
It was gathered that the initiative is part of Asharami Synergy’s ongoing efforts to support education in communities.
The donation includes classroom desks and chairs for the JSS1 classes.
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CEO of Asharami Synergy, Nomnso Dike, said the project will create a more comfortable and functional learning environment and enhance student performance.
“We are delighted at the opportunity to support the attainment of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4, which focuses on ensuring inclusive and equitable quality education. It has been a privilege to collaborate with the management and students of Gaskiya Junior School to deliver this project, and we look forward to future opportunities to enhance academic performance in this historic institution,” Dike said.
According to him, Asharami Synergy’s education-focused social impact initiatives have benefitted over 10,000 individuals. They focus on building capacity and providing the resources necessary to help students learn and grow sustainably.
“Education is the foundation of a brighter future, and at Asharami Synergy, we believe that every child deserves a learning environment that inspires and empowers them” he noted, adding, “This donation is not just about providing furniture; it’s a reminder to the students that their dreams are valid, and we are committed to helping them achieve their goals.”
Vice Principal Academic of Gaskiya Junior School, Sola Oladokun, commended Asharami Synergy for the donation, noting that it would inspire students to perform better with “increased concentration and fewer distractions”.
“These desks and chairs are a game-changer for our students. It’s heartwarming to see their excitement, and as teachers, we are equally thrilled because this will make teaching and learning more effective. We are incredibly grateful to Asharami Synergy and Sahara Group Foundation for this thoughtful intervention,” she added.
Two representatives of the students, Akin Moses and Chukwudi Gift, at the event said the donation would increase their “desire to dream bigger and concentrate better during lessons”.
Also speaking at the commissioning, COO at Asharami Synergy, Adekanmi Adesola, said, “What started as an opportunity to support the communities that host our operations has now come full circle. This donation directly impacts the lives of these students, and we are proud to bring smiles to the faces of the students and teachers.”
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