Tertiary Education Ministry Meets Stakeholders on modalities for Free Transport Palliatives

Following the State Government’s directive for the deployment of buses to Public Tertiary Institutions to cushion the effect of fuel subsidy removal on the staff and students, the Ministry of Tertiary Education has met with stakeholders to work out modalities on the free transport palliatives.

The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Hajiya Habibat Salman Saidu disclosed this at an interactive meeting with the stakeholders in Ilorin, to map out the strategies to be adopted on the State Governor’s directives.

The meeting, which had in attendance Mallam AbdulRazaq Jiddah, Deans of Students Affairs of all Public Tertiary Institutions in the State, representatives of Students’ Unions accross the Tertiary Institutions, and representatives of the Kwara State Chapter of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS).

The Permanent Secretary, who emphasized the goodwill of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq’s administration on the student-community and kwarans at large, charged stakeholders at various sectors to also complement government efforts.

According to her, the interactive meeting was meant to embrace suggestions on how best to allocate the buses to strategic routes within the metropolis, in order to achieve the desired target.

Hajiya Saidu reiterated that the transportation palliative for staff and students of tertiary institutions is free of charge, pointing out that on no account must extortions be entertained.

She added that both staff and students would be allowed to benefit from the free bus ride with their institutions’ identification cards as means of identification.

In his remarks, the Mallam AbdulRazaq Jidda urged the students community to reciprocate the state government’s gesture by conducting themselves in an orderly manner to sustain the free transportation palliative.

Jiddah disclosed further that more palliative measures to cushion the effect of fuel subsidy removal are underway by the State Government.

Speaking on behalf of the students body, the Chairman of the state chapter of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Comrade Yusuf AbdulGafar commended the giant strides of Governor AbdulRazaq for providing them with the succour.

AbdulGafar, who praised the government initiative, suggested that the buses could be stationed at institutions in the rural areas in order to convey students within such rural communities.