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Public Transport Owners of Nigeria Association (PTONA) has appealed to the Federal Government to lift ban on inter-state travel amid the rise in coronavirus cases in the country.
The transport owners made the appeal in Lagos, lamenting the enduring financial losses suffered on account of the ban which, according to them, amounts to over N200 billion.
They also appealed to the government for a special fund to save their already battered businesses, stating that their vehicles have been parked for almost four months since the ban was placed.
The transporters association explained that road transport accounts for 90 percent of movements in the country, and deserves priority consideration in the prevailing situation.
Isaac Uhunmwagho, the President of the association, stressed that the transporters are saddled with heavy burdens and need incentives to enable them revive their businesses after the ban.
They had, in April, forwarded a bail out request of N20 billion intervention fund through the office of Vice President and Chairman of the Presidential Economic Sustainability Committee on COVID-19 pandemic, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo.
The transporters association however raised the fear of bankruptcy if the prohibition is reversed without a bailout from the government.
The Federal Government had placed a ban on inter-state travel in a bid to prevent the limit the spread of the dreaded coronavirus disease.
However the government had, through the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19, said it will decide on the inter-state movement restrictions next week.
Speaking on Monday in Abuja at the daily press briefing by the task force, the PTF National Coordinator, Dr. Sani Aliyu, disclosed that it had started reviewing the guidelines for lifting of the ban on interstate movement.
Aliyu said the guidelines submitted by the Minister of State for Transportation, Gbemisola Saraki, was being reviewed, adding that the roads would be opened as soon as it is safe to do so.
“At the moment, we still have restrictions on interstate travel. But we have been linking up with the Federal Ministry of Transportation through the Minister of State for Transportation.
“They have given us guidelines that they have developed: very detailed guidelines, and we have looked at them, summarised them and discussed at PTF last week.
“We have asked the Minister of State for Transportation to please engage with the road transport workers to make sure that the usual garages and parks that we have are ready in terms of guidelines that we have in place such as physical distancing, reducing the number of passengers per vehicle and provision of hand washing facilities etc.
“And I believe they are already working on this and hopefully, we should be able to open as soon as it is safe to do so.”
