Chairman/Sole Administrator of Pacesetter Transport Services, Dr Ibrahim Oladeji Dikko, has stated that the Oyo State Government has subsidised transport fares for 5,880,000 passengers under the Sustainable Action for Economic Recovery (SAfER) programme between January and July 2025.
Dikko explained that under the SAfER Transport initiative, introduced by the governor to alleviate economic hardship faced by residents, students, pensioners, the elderly, people living with disabilities, and others, subsidised transportation is available on various intra-city and inter-city routes using state-owned Pacesetter Buses.
The chairman, who was speaking during a briefing at the Governor’s Office Briefing Room, mentioned that Pacesetter Transport Services carried 9,950,000 passengers in 2024.
He also highlighted that the state government has allocated a total of N2.1 billion to subsidise transport costs across Ibadan and other inter-city routes, including Ibadan-Iseyin-Saki, Ibadan-Oyo-Ogbomoso, and Ibadan-Ibarapa.
He said: “Since August 5th, 2023, when Governor Seyi Makinde announced SAfER, till date, the state government has spent N2,151,000,000 to subsidise transportation for the people.
“Between August 5th and December 2023, the governor invested N541 million in subsidising transport fare by 50 per cent for residents of the state. We commuted between 26,000 and 30,000 people on a daily basis in 2023.
“In 2024, the governor invested N924 million and we will have over 9,950,000 people in 2024.
“This year, as we speak, the governor has invested N686 million, and so far, from January to date, we have commuted about 5,880,000 passengers.
“The public needs to know what the governor has been doing to put all those buses back on the road and to ensure that life is easier for residents of the state.”
The PTS chairman praised Governor Makinde for transforming and reforming the transport company, which had become moribund before he assumed office in 2019. He noted that the PTS has experienced growth since he was appointed as Chairman and Sole Administrator of the company in July 2023.
According to him, in addition to increasing the number of operational vehicles and routes, paying pensions and gratuities, and restructuring the workforce for improved service delivery to the public, the company has introduced several innovations, including a digital payment system and the installation of Closed Circuit Television (cctv) cameras and trackers in the vehicles.
He mentioned that the services currently operate 39 intra-city routes with 55 buses, as well as five inter-city routes with 10 buses.
Dikko stated that after assuming office in 2023, the PTS revived 30 buses and deployed them within Ibadan metropolis. Additionally, it deployed another 16 buses on intercity routes, with a total of 46 buses now serving the SAfER Transport.
He added that he was also able to reduce revenue leakage, siphoning of diesel, and route diversions by drivers, as well as improve speed control. The services also went digital on 24 September 2023 with the introduction of a card payment system.
Dikko maintained that the introduction of the card payment system increased revenues from N200,000 to over N1.5 million in a day, noting that the PTS has recorded a steady rise in the number of subscribers, reaching 262,000 to date.
The chairman listed the installation of trackers on buses, the fixing of speed monitors, and CCTV cameras in buses as other reforms undertaken by the company.
He also mentioned the clearing of the company’s tax liabilities amounting to N150 million, the payment of salaries without default, acquisition of 20KVA and 250KVA generating sets, complete reconstruction of the company, and improvements in staff welfare, such as the introduction of overtime allowances, management meeting allowances, and the implementation of the minimum wage, among other achievements of the PTS.
He explained how he has managed to expand the services of the PTS, which, according to him, have generated more revenue for the state, saying: “Let me say this. There are other avenues whereby we have expanded to make money, because we can’t rely on 50 per cent subsidies across all routes in the state.
“We have taken expansion as a core mandate, a mission. We have expanded. And that is why we have Lagos and Abuja routes to augment. And also, we have introduced logistics services. You can send your goods and services to Ibadan, Lagos or Abuja.
“Also, there is an opportunity to make money from branding. You can brand our buses. So, those are ways we augment, and we have more profits.”
While fielding questions from journalists, the PTS chairman added that the Oyo State Government had received a total of 30 CNG buses from the Federal Government and had since deployed them to inter-state routes, with the Ibadan to Abuja operation launched earlier in 2025.
He noted that the Lagos to Abuja operations would launch in a few days, while the Ibadan to Kwara operations would follow in a few weeks, with operations to other Southwestern states to be announced later in the year.
He also expressed the readiness of the PTS to launch a CNG conversion centre as well as Taxi Transport Services for easy movement of travellers within and outside the Ibadan International Airport after the upgrade, as well as to and from the train station, among others.
When asked about the controversy that surfaced about the PTS at some point, Dikko maintained that it was a situation of corruption fighting back, saying: “When we came in, PTS was nothing to write home about. I can say it boldly that between July 2023, when I came in, and December 2023, PTS was embroiled in crisis. There was a tax liability of N150 million and they actually froze all the accounts of PTS.
“We cleared that tax liability in six months without going to the state government to help us, because it is a company and it has to self-run and be self-sustained. It is a must. So, we had to start working on how to boost the morale of the employees.
“We started paying back our gratuity and pensions from 1994. And, there were backlogs of promotions from 2009, and we said something had to be done so that we could, at least, boost morale. I can categorically tell you these facts, and you can come and cross-check them.
“Then, we started introducing N50,000 running cost per employee to boost their morale. But you know that when people are rigid and they cannot change, believing that they are bigger than the system, there will always be a problem. So, they sent those petitions to the House of Assembly, saying that I was actually siphoning money.
“Let me give you an example, on our interstate operations, as of today, we have commuted 38,539 people. There is about N160.2 million that we have made in the past six months. There are proofs. How do you want to take this money that was paid electronically out?
“So, the controversy came because we have blocked loopholes, blocked every way through which some people can actually steal. So, they started going about and painting different pictures, different scenarios. They went to the House of Assembly, they petitioned DSS, police and all that.
“But when these people did their investigations, they saw that it was the accusers who were painting another picture.
“So, for me, I am standing by the truth. There is nothing to hide. All money made in PTS is electronically made. And, you cannot remove anything.”
The PTS chairman was accompanied to the press briefing by Mr. Aremu Taofeek, Director of Finance and Accounts and Mr. Mukhtar Azeez, Director of Business Planning and Financial Analysis.
