TheCable

The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has unveiled plans to bar unpainted taxis and buses from plying roads in Abuja. 

This comes amid rising cases of ‘one chance’ robberies in the city, and the escalating insecurity in some parts of the FCT.

“One chance” is a type of robbery in which unsuspecting passengers are lured into commercial vehicles whose occupants are robbers.

Nyesom Wike, minister of the FCT, has expressed his administration’s resolve to tackle the menace.

The minister said this on Monday, while speaking with journalists in Abuja.

“We are not going to allow vehicles that are not painted with FCT colour and registered by the FCTA to ply commercial in the territory,” Wike said.

“That way, you know the driver is certified by the FCT and the buses and the taxis were also approved by the FCT.

“When this is done, you as the passenger will not take the risk of going to enter any vehicle that you don’t even know.”

The minister also said ride-hailing operators like Uber and Bolt, would be required to register to operate in Abuja, so that the government would know who the drivers are.

Wike expressed concern that the FCT does not have an official terminal where residents can board a bus to specific destinations, noting that henceforth, drivers would be profiled and certified by security agencies.

“That way you know the drivers and the vehicle that you are entering,” he added.

“But currently, everybody is just on the road. You are going to Nyanya, a car is on the road, you enter; you are going to Wuye, a car is on the road, you enter.

“What we are trying to do in the 2024 fiscal year is to at least build three terminals for a start, so that we will know the buses and taxis that will carry people from such terminals.

“When this is done, nobody will take the risk of going on the road to wave a taxi. That way, you will be able to reduce crime.”