Business
Edo Line Needs N250m Lifeline — Sole Administrator
The Sole Administrator of
Edo Line, a state government Mr Osamede Adun, owned transport company, has said that the company needed N250 million lifeline in order to resume operations.
Adun, who was recently appointed by the state government, made the disclosure to newsmen at a press briefing in Benin, on Thursday.
The Tide source reports that Edo Line, which is the foremost transport company in Edo State, has been shut since 2010.
He said that the fund would be used to buy new buses, pay salaries owed to the workers, and reactivate its offices across the federation.
The sole administrator regretted the level of rot in the once viable company, which at one time had a fleet of over 180 vehicles.
According to him, most of the buses have been vandalised while only 45 out of the 108 vehicles he inherited, are serviceable.
He also complained of the 365 personnel working in the company with only 45 vehicles on the road.
“How do we expect to function effectively if we continue like this.
“My position is to revive this foremost transport company which used to be the darling of all Edo.
“I regret that our sons who were saddled with the responsibility of managing the transport company at one point or another, mismanaged it.
“I have promised the governor that I will make the best use of this opportunity by restoring the company to its pride of place among other transport companies in the country.’’
He said that rehabilitation work had started at the company since he took over.
“As I speak with you, I have ordered for over 300 tyres of the serviceable buses to be repaired.
“We also plan to buy new buses, reactivate our stations across the country, pay salaries owed to workers of the company, among others.
“To achieve this however, we need a quarter of a billion naira from the state government to properly reposition the transport company.
heritage.”
Adun pledged that the company would pay back the money within a year, after which it would generate revenue for the government.
“Concerning the debt profile, our team of lawyers are working on that, but let me quickly inform you that Union Bank is the one owing us money as against belief that the transport line is the one indebted to the bank. *
“Most of the debt acquired by the company was taken by the individuals who mismanaged the company using it as collateral.”