KEKE NAPEP CRISIS! Gov. Akpabio Comes to the Rescue

Reduces Daily tariff to N200 for keke Operators

Yearly  renewal  slashed to N500 and Biometric data capture  N3000

By Ephraim Ikpe

The recent crisis and demonstrations involving  keke Napep operators and persons believed to be hoodlums that rocked some parts of Uyo capital city last week was brought under check by the sudden intervention of the state governor, Chief Godswill Akpabio.

After a careful and thorough review of the crisis caused by the daily tariff of N400 demanded of the operators of the Keke Napep plying roads in the capital city, a magnanimous governor Akpabio slashed the daily tariff from N400 to N200 daily and directed that the daily rate covers Keke Napep operators for the whole of Akwa Ibom State.

Gov. Godswill Akpabio of AKS.

Briefing newsmen in his office, the Commissioner for Transport, Prince Godwin Ntukedeh said the governor, in a meeting with members of the State executive Council on ways to solve that problem examined the Constitution, the local government law and other relevant laws associated with  revenue generation in the local government areas and directed according to law that henceforth revenue from mechanically propelled equipment, including Keke Napep should remain the exclusive preserve of the state government and not the business of local government areas as done earlier.

According to him, the state Ministry of Transport, acting for the government of Akwa Ibom State would manage, control, organize and raise funds from any mechanically propelled machines, including Keke Napep.

The governor, according to Prince Ntukudeh, ordered that the yearly renewal of the Keke Napep operating instrument be slashed to N500.00 while the charge for biometric data capture should be reduced from N6000.00 to N3000.00 to lessen the burden of much taxation on the Keke operators.

The Commissioner recalled that earlier the operators used to suffer the burden of multiple taxation (multiple ticketing)as was demanded of them by the five local government areas that share common boundaries with the capital city, the Unions and the sellers of the tickets.  He said Keke operators used to pay as much as N1250 or more daily depending on the areas of the capital city they plied hence his Ministry intervened and halted such practice, since it had a telling effect on the operators of KeKe. 

He said it was the Union leaders’ proposal on the new rate of N400 which was recently implemented after series of consultations with the stakeholders but regretted that hoodlums, sponsored by some unknown selfish politicians cashed in on the issue and caused unnecessary hiccups in the metropolis.  He said reports were received by his Ministry of how the miscreants blocked genuine and registered  operators from ferrying commuters, rob them of their daily collections and cart away monies and even tickets from the sellers in some parts of the capital city and he had to intervene with security officials to keep the situation under control.

The former national President of Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio said that of the N400, N170 was meant for the local government areas sharing boundaries with the capital city, N50.00 for the ticket seller, and part went to the transport Unions.

He said the over 300 ticket sellers who normally made over N3000 per day were out of jobs when the daily ticketing was suspended, but that when the matter was revisited by the transport Union leaders, he mentioned to the governor who approved that a review of the tariff be made with the interest of the common people at heart.

 The Commissioner was thankful to the governor for his quick intervention in the matter,  and for also procuring five towing trucks for the Ministry which he said would tow off the road any broken down or wrongly parked  trailer or trucks on major roads seen as brutal death traps for many road users over time.

He used that occasion to appeal to the Keke Napep operators to be law abiding citizens of the state by avoiding to ply on areas marked as “ambassadorial zones” to keep the beauty of the centre of the capital city adding that  those Keke Napep which were impounded last week by agents of his Ministry  for failure to pay the former tariff of N400 daily would be released without penalties to their rightful to owners.

The Commissioner announced  the dissolution of the Committee set up by his Ministry to handle the collection and management of funds realized from sales of daily tickets adding that the state government would set up a central ticketing committee which would report directly to the governor.

In reaction to a question on the sustenance of the action of government at the expiration of governor Akpabio’s administration, Prince Ntukudeh said A Bill on the Akwa Ibom State Traffic Management Authority was under way and that when the House of Assembly must have passed such a Bill into law, many issues connected thereto would be addressed.

The commissioner disclosed the intention of government to acquire a vessel to ply the Calabar-Uyo water ways for reduction of human traffic on the road and encourage people to travel by water to calabar, adding that more taxi cabs would acquired to complement the work done by keke for Akwa Ibom economy.

He thanked the Unions for standing in support of the actions of government to make the capital city habitable and the transport system work for the benefit of all.  Mr Ntukudeh regretted the challenges his Ministry was facing in course of trying to be of service to Akwa Ibom people as there were over 50 legal matters addressed to the Ministry by many complainants about his Ministry’s effort to sanitize the system.

Comrade Sunny Enang, Chairman of the Keke Napep union in a short speech thanked the governor for his magnanimity to members of his Union by reducing the daily tariff to N200.00 flat, describing the governor as a “trail blazer and Ette KeKe of Nigeria”, explaining that they used to struggle to pay N250 per local government area  when they venture  outside Uyo LGA, meaning, according to him, that earlier they could pay as much as  N1250, N1500 or N1750 as daily tariff to be able to ply the roads.  He stated that they were even struggling  and agitating for N250.00 unified ticketing for Keke Napep in times past and such was not feasible.  On behalf of his members, Comrade Enang was grateful to governor Godswill Akpabio for responding promptly to their problems.