Shettima: Tinubu’s Massive Infrastructural Development In Line With Transporters’ Welfare, Operations

* Discloses govt working towards reducing cost of transportation nationwide * Inaugurates transporters support group for president’s re-election, tasks them on peaceful, issue-based campaign Deji Elumoye in Abuja Vice-President Kashim Shettima on Monday said President Bola Tinubu is deeply committed to prioritizing transport infrastructure to ease operations for Nigerian transporters. According to him, the Tinubu administration treats connectivity as an economic necessity and is actively working to reduce the cost of movement because the president does not take the struggles of transport workers for granted. Shettima, who spoke in Abuja while formally inaugurating the National Working Committee of the National Structure of Transporters for Tinubu/Shettima 2027, observed that there is no group in the nation that connects communities as much as transporters. Represented by the Deputy Chief of Staff to the President, Senator Ibrahim Hadejia, the vice-president noted that beyond their operational duty, transport workers are unparalleled ambassadors of the nation. Pointing out that the transportation industry stands at the heart of economic boom, Shettima said the sector “determines whether a farmer reaches a market, whether a manufacturer moves goods, whether a trader restocks, whether a student reaches school, and whether an investor connects production to demand. “Every kilometre saved, every bottleneck removed, every port made more efficient, and every safer journey completed contributes to national productivity. This is why we can’t afford to take you for granted. “This understanding also explains why President Bola Tinubu has remained committed to infrastructure that eases your operations. Across highways, rail corridors, ports, clean mobility initiatives, and logistics infrastructure, the administration has treated connectivity as an economic necessity,” he stated. The vice-president described transport workers as credible witnesses to the administration’s struggles, while also acknowledging their role in conveying people and goods across the nation on a daily basis. “So, to have the men and women whose daily work moves Nigeria organise themselves across every region and mode of transport to give President Bola Tinubu another chance speaks to your understanding of what has been achieved and the unfinished tasks ahead of us,” he added. He recalled that on June 15, 2026, he had welcomed the transport workers to “the fold of patriots who’ve come together to promote the interests of the nation above misinformation, disinformation and economic sabotage”. Shettima said he did so based on his belief that Nigerian transporters could help the nation’s “diverse communities understand the Renewed Hope Agenda and participate responsibly” in the country’s democratic process. “Barely three months later, you have built structures across the country, drawing in road transporters, railway workers, aviation stakeholders, maritime operators, inland waterways practitioners, logistics providers, and those engaged in pipeline transportation. I commend the dedication and patriotism behind this national spread,” he lauded them. Describing them as unparalleled ambassadors of the nation, the vice-president said this explains why the Tinubu administration will not rest until it puts “a system in place where the dignity of operators is guaranteed, traffic laws are upheld, and passengers are protected”. “The fast-evolving technologies of your industry are a reality check we cannot afford to ignore, and that’s why your friendship, your support, your endorsement and your expectations are critical to where we are headed,” he added. Shettima, however, cautioned the transport workers to keep their activities peaceful and their campaign issue-based, pointing out that no political objective is improved by disorder. His words: “I appeal to each of you to remember that political participation places obligations on those who organise others. Keep your engagements peaceful and your message issue-based, even as he implored them to “reject violence, threats, intimidation, misinformation, and every form of electoral misconduct. “No political objective is improved by disorder, and no democratic cause is strengthened by fear. Nigeria’s future must be argued in the open, tested by citizens, and decided through credible elections. “We have emphasised time and again that an election is not an act of war. Elections are opportunities for each citizen or group to express their interests and demonstrate their preferences, and you have chosen well. You do this based on your convictions, and that’s why the journey ahead requires you to exercise maturity and resist distractions in your engagements with the communities that already hold you in high esteem.” Earlier, National Coordinator of the Transporters for Tinubu/Shettima 2027, Prince Segun Obayendo, said the support of stakeholders in the nation’s transport and logistics sector was driven by the impactful reforms and investments of the Tinubu administration in the ecosystem. Obayendo, who is also Technical Adviser to the President on Transportation, Logistics and Innovation, said the inauguration of structures of the Transporters for Tinubu/Shettima 2027 was critical to building a concensus among members for the purpose of the president’s re-election, assuring the vice-president that they would work relentlessly for the success of the present administration. Also speaking, Deputy National Organising Secretary of APC, Emeka Okafor, applauded the commitment and support of the group for the re-election of President Tinubu, noting that the administration’s performance across different sectors was a justification for his re-election. He urged the group to leverage the platform and their network to galvanise nationwide support for the president and candidates of the party across all levels in the 2027 general election.