A Clash seems inevitable as the Transport Secretariat of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) yesterday revealed plans to concession new parking companies to handle Pay ‘n’ Park projects within the Federal Capital City (FCC).
In a chat with Public Relations Officer of the secretariat, Mrs. Stella Ojeme, she said the secretariat intends to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which will mark the formal concessioning of two new parking companies to manage some zones in the FCC.
Ojeme said, “the idea is to decongest the city of traffic because of the mass movement of residents into the FCC during the day.”
LEADERSHIP investigations reveal that the new parking companies have already commenced operations in areas within the metropolis.
Investigations also reveals that the transport secretariat of the FCTA had earlier on concessioned most part of the FCC to two pioneer, parking companies, the Integrated Parking Services (IPS) and Platinum Parking Management Services (PPMS).
The five year concession contract between the FCTA and the companies was supposed to run from 2011 to 2016, within which the companies were supposed to remit revenue to the coffers of the FCTA.
A tour around town yesterday however revealed that some Civil Enforcement Officers (CEO), with reflective jackets with Special Marshal printed on it, allegedly from the new companies, were already in full operations within the city center.
A cross section of residents who spoke with LEADERSHIP said the new development will invariably bring confusion to the well coordinated parking enforcement that was already on ground.
A resident, Emeka Ochema, said, “this is madness. This is a high level of unseriousness by the administration, we were just trying to adapt to having to part with money to park but now we are being forced to deal with multiple parking companies within the same vicinity, with different payment systems. It is simply ridiculous.
“This means that I will pay with a different company in Area 11 and a different one in Aguyi Ironsi. It is simply a bastardization of the whole exercise.”
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