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PlentyWaka Partners GUO to Expand Travel Offerings
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigeria’s leading transportation technology company, Plentywaka, has partnered with a leading interstate transport company, GUO to expand both companies’ travel offerings.
The partnership will see GUO enable its ticket booking on the Plentywaka app, therefore, joining its interstate travel network, Travelwaka and will also onboard 600 new buses from GUO onto its platform, leading to the opening up of new routes on the Travelwaka platform.
Major routes expected to debut on the platform include Lagos-Abuja along with about 200 others.
The recently-launched Travelwaka is majorly a booking platform for a network of interstate transport companies now including GUO Transports. It provides affordable tickets for major bus travel companies, offering as much as a 10 per cent discount.
It will also give users an easy and seamless way to compare options from a wide range of travel companies all in a single search, and on one single app as both companies combine technology, and marketing, to bring transport into one simple product, the Plentywaka mobile app.
Speaking on the partnership, co-founder and CEO of Plentywaka, Ms Onyeka Akumah, said: “The partnership with GUO Transport Services Limited is great for our users especially because we know a lot of them have been looking for routes that GUO operates on.”
“We are very excited to have developed the technology behind an easy-to-use mobile app that will make the travel experience seamless for Nigerians,” she added.
The partnership will capitalise on GUO Transport’s experience, which has one of the largest range of routes among interstate operators on the Nigerian transport scene. Founded in 1980 as a division of G. U. Okeke & Sons Ltd, the company presently services more than 200 routes spanning the length and breadth of Nigeria and spilling into the West African sub-region.
With its modern, environmentally-friendly fleet and professional service, the company has become an icon in the transportation industry, providing safe, enjoyable and affordable travel to millions of passengers annually.
On the part of the company, its Director of Operations, Mr Kene Okeke, said it will enable GUO to deliver its remarkable services to more people.
“We are excited about this partnership with PlentyWaka because their values and offerings align closely with ours. We can now move more people from across Nigeria conveniently and without hassle.”
With this new partnership and additional 600 buses, Plentywaka brings the total amount of buses on its Travelwaka network to 850. And the transport technology company which has completed over 350,000 rides in the last 20 months isn’t slowing down.
“We will continue to sign leading bus operators in Nigeria as we aim to become the largest aggregator of bus operators in the country providing a better way to manage and monitor their bookings and customers,” the company said.
By Dipo Olowookere
Residents and motorists plying the Aina Obembe Road in Baruwa, Ipaja, Lagos, may soon heave a sigh of relief as the excruciating traffic gridlock being experienced in the area both day and night may soon be a thing of the past.
This is because the chairman of Ayobo-Ipaja LCDA, Mr Lukmon Agbaje, has directed those involved in indiscriminate truck parking along the road to remove the heavy-duty vehicles within one week, threatening to invoke appropriate enforcement measures for noncompliance with this directive.
Speaking during a meeting on Wednesday with the management of SENA Company, which owns the affected trucks, as well as the leadership of Oluwadara CDA and other key stakeholders like the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), at the council’s secretariat, Mr Agbaje frowned at the prolonged inconvenience suffered by the community, stressing that public roads must remain accessible and safe for all users.
He emphasised the need for a collaborative approach in resolving the issue without undermining legitimate business operations, noting that he’s focused on finding a lasting solution to the gridlock experienced between Oluwaga and Aina Obembe, where parked trucks have continued to obstruct traffic, disrupt business activities, and pose safety concerns for residents and motorists.
He tasked the firm and the CDA to jointly identify and implement alternative parking arrangements that would remove all trucks from the affected roads and restore the free flow of traffic.
He declared that, “The welfare of our people remains our highest priority. No individual or corporate organisation should obstruct public infrastructure or create avoidable hardship for residents. We must ensure that economic activities coexist with public safety, order, and convenience.”
The council chief reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to promoting orderly development, ensuring safe and accessible roads, improving traffic management, and creating an environment where businesses can thrive alongside the well-being of residents.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The federal government has cut import levies on new and used vehicles by as much as 10 per cent in a move aimed at reducing the cost of vehicle importation, even as it commenced the implementation of a new Green Tax surcharge.
According to an update issued by the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) on Wednesday, the import levy on new vehicles has been reduced from 20 per cent to 10 per cent, while the levy on used vehicles has been slashed from 15 per cent to five per cent under the 2026 Fiscal Policy Measures, which took effect on July 1, 2026.
The customs said the policy is designed to ease the cost of vehicle imports while advancing the government’s environmental sustainability objectives through the newly introduced Green Tax.
The implementation also reduces the overall import duty on fully built passenger vehicles from 70 per cent to 40 per cent.
As part of the Green Tax framework, a new environmental surcharge of between two per cent and four per cent will apply to petrol-powered vehicles with engine capacities exceeding 2,000cc. However, mass transit buses, electric vehicles, and passenger cars with engines below 2,000cc are exempt from the surcharge.
Beyond the automobile sector, the fiscal measures also lower import duties on several essential goods. The duty on imported rice has been reduced from 70 per cent to 47.5 per cent, while crude palm oil now attracts a 28.75 per cent duty.
In addition, import duties on agricultural and manufacturing machinery have been completely removed to support local production, while Waste PET has been added to the export prohibition list to encourage domestic recycling.
By Dipo Olowookere
Plans are underway to carry out a comprehensive data capture and registration exercise of all commercial motorcycle and tricycle operators within Ayobo-Ipaja LCDA.
This move, according to the council chairman, Mr Lukmon Agbaje, is part of proactive measures to strengthen the security of lives and property across the Local Council Development Area (LCDA). The exercise, he said, would be executed in partnership with security agencies and transport unions.
On Tuesday, the council chief convened a high-level security meeting with leaders of commercial transport unions and key security stakeholders operating within the area.
Mr Agbaje expressed concern over the increasing influx of commercial motorcycle (Okada) and tricycle (Keke) operators into the LCDA without proper documentation or profiling.
According to him, the absence of reliable records poses significant security challenges and could provide opportunities for criminal elements to infiltrate communities under the guise of commercial transportation.
He stressed that security is best achieved through preventive measures, noting that effective profiling and documentation remain essential tools in safeguarding residents and protecting the council from emerging security threats.
Mr Agbaje disclosed that under the new security framework, all Okada and Keke parks and operational locations across the LCDA would be officially documented, adding that every duly verified operator would receive an official identification jacket bearing a unique coded number to facilitate easy identification and monitoring.
He also said a mandatory guarantor system will be introduced to strengthen accountability, ensuring that every registered rider has a verifiable guarantor who can be contacted whenever necessary.
The chairman noted that these measures are designed not only to improve security coordination but also to protect law-abiding commercial operators and discourage criminal activities within the council.
Leaders of the various transport unions welcomed the initiative, noting that proper documentation will distinguish genuine operators from criminal elements, enhance public confidence, and promote a safer working environment for commercial transporters.
Also, the Divisional Police Officers (DPOs) of Ayobo and Ipaja Commands commended the initiative, describing it as a timely and commendable step towards strengthening community policing. They reaffirmed the Nigeria Police Force’s commitment to working closely with the council to ensure full compliance and sustain peace and public order.
