By Oyo Amebo
“Institutions are the lengthened shadow of one man.” The words of Ralph Waldo Emerson feel uncannily apt when one considers what has unfolded within the Pacesetter Transport Service.
For years, the agency moved like a body without coordination, alive but inefficient, present yet unreliable. Today, it moves with intent, rhythm and accountability, not by accident, but by design.
Dr Ibraheem Salami Dikko did not arrive with the language of rescue. He arrived with questions that cut deeper than appearances: Where does the money go? Why do systems fail even when assets exist?
What makes public service endure beyond personalities? His answers were not delivered through grand announcements, but through the slow, exacting work of rebuilding trust in process.
He understood early that no transport system can outperform its internal order. Before buses could inspire confidence, the institution itself had to become intelligible.
The first reckoning came with money, the quiet bloodstream of any operation. Cash, long the dominant mode of fare collection, had blurred responsibility and invited opacity.
By replacing it with a digital ticketing framework, Dr Dikko did something quietly radical: he made honesty automatic. Every journey now leaves a trace, every naira a record, every discrepancy a question that can be answered with data rather than conjecture.
From there, movement itself was brought under scrutiny. GPS technology transformed the fleet from a collection of vehicles into a coordinated system.
Routes could be monitored, schedules evaluated, fuel consumption analysed. The guesswork that once defined daily operations gave way to foresight.
Deviations no longer dissolved into excuses; they appeared clearly on screens. CCTV coverage extended this discipline, signalling to staff and passengers alike that safety and professionalism were no longer negotiable ideals but operating standards.
Yet Dr Dikko’s reforms never mistook technology for leadership. Machines can enforce rules, but they cannot inspire commitment. The human core of Pacesetter had long been strained by uncertainty, late salaries and blurred expectations.
Addressing this was not merely humane; it was strategic. Prompt payment restored dignity. Clear job definitions reduced friction. Training rebuilt confidence. Gradually, a workforce that had learned to endure began to learn to perform. Ownership replaced apathy.
Perhaps the most forward-looking shift came with energy. The introduction of Compressed Natural Gas buses was not a flourish for environmental headlines, but a calculated move towards sustainability. Lower fuel costs, reduced emissions and predictable pricing formed a triangle of long-term stability.
The establishment of a dedicated CNG refuelling station in Ibadan confirmed that this was not an experiment but an infrastructure-backed commitment.
In choosing longevity over convenience, the agency aligned itself with global transport thinking while responding to local economic realities.
The financial consequences of this discipline were inevitable. Leakages narrowed. Debts became manageable. Budgets evolved from optimistic documents into functional tools. What had once felt like a fragile enterprise now behaves like an institution aware of its responsibilities and limits.
For the public, the change is no longer abstract. Buses arrive when expected. Payments are straightforward. The experience of travel feels calmer, safer, predictable. Trust, once eroded by years of inconsistency, is quietly being rebuilt with every completed journey.
What distinguishes Dr Dikko’s stewardship is not novelty, but coherence. Each reform speaks to the other. Technology supports accountability. Accountability reinforces professionalism. Professionalism restores public confidence. It is a chain reaction born of clarity rather than charisma.
In an era where public service is too often reduced to spectacle, the transformation of Pacesetter Transport Service offers a quieter, more enduring lesson.
Institutions do not change because they are rebranded; they change because they are restructured. And when structure is guided by integrity, systems begin to think, to correct themselves, and to serve.
On Oyo’s roads today, the buses move forward. More importantly, so does the idea that public institutions, when led with discipline and vision, can still work as they were always meant to.