The Nigeria Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) has said its activities may be disrupted if the federal government fails to address the current rising cost of its operations.
Briefing newsmen Thursday in Abuja, NARTO President, Alh. Yusuf Lawal Othman, said for more than a year, the association had been operating at a loss.
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He said members of the association had been groaning under intense and harsh operating conditions occasioned by acute shortage of working capital for the efficient running of its operations.
Othman said in 2020, there was an approval by the defunct board of the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) to increase the freight rate by 26%.
He said however, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, could not endorse the approval due to the implication of its implementation that would result in either an outright increase in the pump price of fuel or lead to an increase in the subsidy on the product.
He said based on presidential approval, 10% was approved to be implemented immediately, while the balance of 16% was to be implemented.
“Since then, unfortunately, the economic situation in the country has not been better. Our operational costs keep growing up exponentially,” he said.
He said another problem affecting their operations is the condition of the roads, many of which are in precarious condition.
The president said: “Although we commend the federal government for the NNPC Tax Credit intervention of N621 billion for the repair of 21 roads, they should speed up with the awards of the contracts and exercise extreme care in the supervision, monitoring and payment so as to ensure value for money in contract execution.”
