1 Comment 
Operators of the “Waka Fine” public bus service have agreed to reduce ticket prices from NLe 12 to NLe 11 effective immediately, following a tense parliamentary hearing and widespread public outcry.
The decision was reached on Wednesday during an emergency session of Parliament’s Transport and Aviation Committee, where transport officials were summoned to explain a sudden price hike that had taken effect on January 30, 2026.
The hearing was marked by sharp criticism from lawmakers over the lack of public consultation. Committee Chairman, Hon. Dixon Rogers, reprimanded the operators for implementing the increase without prior notice or legislative engagement.
“Why did you increase the ticket price without first informing the people? Who gave you that right?” Hon. Rogers asked, emphasizing that the public and their representatives must be consulted on changes to essential services.
Other Members of Parliament, including Hon. Mustapha Sellu, challenged the financial justifications provided by the operators, pointing to discrepancies in the reported figures and citing confusion among commuters who were reportedly being charged inconsistent fares.
Representatives from Metro Transport Company (the operators of Waka Fine) and the Ministry of Transport defended the initial increase from NLe 8 to NLe 12, citing “soaring operational costs.” They identified the high cost of importing specialized transmission oil and a dwindling supply of spare parts as the primary drivers of the adjustment.
While agreeing to the compromise fare of NLe 11, the operators issued a stark warning that current ticket prices remain “unsustainable” without direct government intervention.
“Without subsidies, maintaining the buses and keeping services running at affordable prices becomes impossible,” a spokesperson for Waka Fine stated. The operators urged Parliament to adopt a public transport subsidy model similar to those utilized in Singapore, Rwanda, and Senegal.
Why can it be at Le10?
When fuel was initially Le28.5 the transport Farr for waka fine buses was Le10 then later fuel reduced to Le25 and waka fine buses became Le8.
Now that fuel has risen again to Le28.5 we expect waka fine buses to be Le10 not more than that.
Do they understand how people are struggling to even access the buses not to talk of the costs.
They should be focusing on making sure that we have the buses available to the public buy as we speak a huge number of the buses are packed for reasons best known to them.