Tinubu declares free ride of Abuja light rail until December

President Bola Tinubu has declared free rides for residents of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) for the newly commissioned Abuja Rail Mass Transit until the end of the year.

This announcement was made on Wednesday, May 29, in Abuja during the presidential inauguration of the Abuja light rail as part of the celebrations marking his first year in office.

Tinubu praised FCT Minister Nyesom Wike for completing the project, referring to him as "Mr. Project."

"Our dear landlord and his team, I heard you saying two months free ride. I appeal to you to make it till the end of the year free ride, since today you are not going to charge me. Let me give the people hope and reason to celebrate.

"Today, what we have in the FCT is another piece of evidence that we are a government that delivers on promises. I observe keenly other milestones that this administration has achieved, especially in the areas of social services and other public utilities," he stated, according to Channels TV.

On May 23, Wike announced that the facility would provide Nigerians two months of free rides.

The rail system, developed in six phases, was financed with loans from the China EXIM Bank.

Although former President Muhammadu Buhari inaugurated it on July 12, 2018, it quickly became non-operational due to vandalism.