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By Jackson Okparukegor
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s latest update on the National Affordable CNG Transit Programme has once again drawn attention to an important reality: when governments are deliberate, innovative and responsive to the needs of citizens, policies can move beyond official pronouncements to produce tangible relief in the daily lives of the people. This is clearly the case of Kaduna State as it stands out among the states highlighted by the President.
In his September 19 update, President Tinubu disclosed that 100 CNG-powered buses are providing free transportation on major routes across Kaduna State. More significantly, the buses carried about 3.2 million passengers in their first year of operation, saving commuters more than N3.5 billion in transportation costs.
Those figures are not merely statistics. They represent millions of individual journeys made easier, cheaper and more accessible for ordinary citizens. And behind Kaduna’s emergence as a reference point is the determined intervention of Governor Uba Sani, whose administration has consistently placed the welfare, comfort and economic wellbeing of the people at the centre of its development agenda.
The significance of Kaduna’s CNG transportation initiative becomes clearer when placed alongside the experiences of other states. President Tinubu cited examples from across the country where alternative-energy transportation is already reducing fares. In Borno, CNG-powered and electric public transport services move commuters for between N50 and N100 on routes where commercial operators charge between N300 and N600.
In Oyo, the deployment of CNG buses reduced the Lagos–Ibadan fare from about N8,000 to N3,200 during the initial deployment. In Enugu, the Enugu–Nsukka fare fell from N2,500 to N1,500, while Plateau’s government-supported buses carry about 13,000 commuters daily at N200 compared with more than N500 charged commercially. These examples demonstrate the broader national potential of CNG-powered transportation.
But Kaduna occupies a special position because of the scale and character of the intervention. Free transportation on major routes is not simply a reduction in fares. For a worker who must commute every day, a student travelling to school, a trader moving between markets or a family struggling with rising household expenses, the elimination of daily transport costs can make a significant difference.
The President’s disclosure that Kaduna’s buses saved commuters more than N3.5 billion in their first year provides a concrete measure of that impact.
Governor Uba Sani’s approach to the CNG initiative reflects a broader philosophy that government must constantly search for practical ways of easing the burden on citizens. Transportation is not an isolated issue. It affects virtually every aspect of economic and social life.
When transportation becomes expensive, workers spend more of their income getting to work. Traders incur higher costs moving goods. Students and families face additional financial pressure. Ultimately, higher transportation costs feed into the prices of goods and services. Therefore, any serious intervention that reduces transportation costs has consequences beyond the bus stop.
It puts money back into the pockets of citizens. This is particularly important at a time when global energy-market disruptions are putting pressure on petrol and diesel prices. As President Tinubu noted, Nigeria may not be able to control developments in global energy markets, but as a gas-rich country, it can reduce its exposure to those pressures by developing alternative sources of transportation energy. Kaduna’s experience demonstrates that proposition in practical terms.
Rather than waiting for circumstances to improve, the state has embraced an alternative that uses Nigeria’s abundant gas resources to provide affordable mobility.
In this regard, the phrase “first among equals” is particularly appropriate in considering Kaduna’s place in the emerging national CNG transportation landscape. It does not suggest that other states have not made significant progress. Indeed, the President’s update listed several impressive interventions across the federation.
Rather, Kaduna provides an early and visible reference point for what can happen when policy, political commitment and implementation converge. A reference point is valuable because it provides something that other governments can examine, adapt and improve upon.
The Kaduna model demonstrates that CNG transportation need not remain a policy proposal discussed in government offices. It can become a functioning public service capable of transporting millions of people and delivering measurable financial savings. That is perhaps the most important lesson.
The success of any public policy should ultimately be measured by its effect on the people. For Governor Uba Sani, the CNG initiative fits into a pattern of governance that places considerable emphasis on interventions capable of producing direct benefits for ordinary Kaduna residents.
The underlying philosophy is straightforward: government exists not merely to construct infrastructure or issue policies, but to improve the quality of life of the people. That philosophy is particularly relevant in the area of transportation.
A government can build impressive roads and still leave citizens struggling with unaffordable fares. It can announce economic reforms without addressing the daily pressures those reforms place on families. But when government deliberately intervenes to reduce transportation costs, the effect is immediately felt.
This is where Kaduna’s CNG buses assume greater significance.
They represent the government stepping into an area where the cost of living meets the daily routine of citizens.
And the beneficiaries are not defined by political affiliation, social status or occupation. They are commuters.
That broad reach explains why the initiative deserves attention beyond Kaduna.
President Tinubu has challenged the states to do more before October 1, when the Federal Government wants more Nigerians to begin experiencing measurable reductions in transportation costs.
The Federal Government says more than 120,000 vehicles have already been converted to CNG, with over 400 certified conversion centres and more than 90 CNG refuelling stations across the country.
The direction is therefore clear: expand the infrastructure, increase conversion capacity and ensure that the savings generated by cheaper energy are transferred to passengers through lower fares.
Kaduna’s experience gives substance to that objective.
It shows that the conversation about CNG is not merely about vehicles, filling stations or conversion centres. It is fundamentally about the economics of everyday life.
If a commuter can save money every day because the government has facilitated cheaper transportation, the policy has achieved something tangible. If millions of commuters can enjoy such savings, the cumulative economic effect can be substantial.
Gov. Sani’s intervention also illustrates the importance of state-level leadership in translating national programmes into local benefits.
The Federal Government can establish frameworks, provide support and create incentives, but states remain critical to implementation. They understand their transport corridors, commuter patterns and local economic realities.
Kaduna has demonstrated what can happen when a state government takes ownership of such an opportunity. That is why its experience can serve as a reference point for other states preparing to deepen their participation in the National Affordable CNG Transit Programme.
The objective should not be to replicate Kaduna mechanically. Different states have different needs. Rather, the lesson is to identify what works, adapt it to local circumstances and ensure that the ultimate beneficiary is the citizen. That is the essence of responsive governance.
There is still much work to be done. The President himself acknowledged that more needs to be done and urged the states to maintain the momentum. CNG infrastructure must expand. More vehicles need to be converted. Transport unions and commercial operators must be brought fully into the process. Above all, the savings generated by cheaper energy must reach passengers.
For Kaduna, therefore, the CNG programme is more than another government initiative. It is part of a continuing effort by Governor Uba Sani to make governance relevant to the everyday experiences of the people. The true measure of leadership is often found not in the grandeur of official ceremonies, but in the relief experienced by ordinary citizens.
A worker who gets to work without spending money on transportation knows the difference. A student who can travel without worrying about the daily fare knows the difference. A trader who saves money on transportation knows the difference.
And when those individual savings aggregate into billions of naira retained in the pockets of citizens, the broader economic significance becomes unmistakable. Kaduna has shown what is possible.
For Governor Uba Sani, the challenge now is to sustain that momentum—and continue working assiduously to make Kaduna a state where development is measured not only by what the government builds, but by the comfort, opportunity and improved quality of life that its people experience.
• Shuaib writes from Abuja
