LAGOS/Nigeria: The Amalgamated Union of App-based Transporters of Nigeria (AUATON) has called for its immediate inclusion in the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative (P-CNG), a palliative program launched by President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
The AUATON National President, Damola Adeniran, made this appeal on Thursday, emphasizing the need for a fair and equitable distribution of CNG conversion kits to all transport workers, including members of AUATON.
Adeniran expressed concern over the exclusion of AUATON members from the P-CNG initiative, despite the union’s significant contributions to the nation’s transportation sector. He highlighted that AUATON, a registered trade union representing hundreds of thousands of app-based transport workers across Nigeria, plays a critical role in the economy and should not be overlooked in such a crucial national program.
“It is unimaginable that the P-CNG program would exclude a technology-driven union like AUATON, especially when the initiative is designed to provide palliative support to commercial transporters. This exclusion undermines our members who are working tirelessly to ease the high cost of transportation across Nigeria,” Adeniran said.
He called on the P-CNG committee chairman and the program director to rectify the situation by including AUATON in the initiative, ensuring that its members benefit from the program on a national scale. Adeniran also revealed that the union’s attempts to engage with the program director through written communication and phone calls have been unsuccessful.
AUATON has been at the forefront of advocating for CNG as an alternative to petrol since the removal of the fuel subsidy in May 2023, which has placed significant hardship on its members. Since October 2023, the union has installed CNG kits in over 100 vehicles as a pilot project to assess the feasibility of using CNG for app-based transport services.
The union also secured a facility with a commercial bank to fund CNG installations for its members nationwide.
However, the announcement of free CNG installations by President Tinubu presents a potential relief for AUATON members. Adeniran urged President Tinubu to intervene and prevent the marginalization and exploitation of the union’s members, ensuring they receive the support they deserve under the P-CNG program.
