The Station Manager, Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), Umuahia, Mr Joseph Odoh, has said that rail infrastructure along the corridor are protected from vandals.
By Leonard Okachie
The Station Manager, Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), Umuahia, Mr Joseph Odoh, has said that rail infrastructure along the corridor are protected from vandals.
Odoh disclosed this while responding to a national survey conducted by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), on the state of railway lines and infrastructure in the country.
According to him, the police attached to the corporation have been working in close collaboration with the external security agencies to ensure security along the railway tracks.
He said the security agents were providing surveillance to ensure that vandals do not have access to the NRC property.
The manager added that the railway staff members also, were always at alert, reporting any suspicious movement to the station police operatives.
He, however, admitted that the streetlights installed at the station were no longer functioning.
Odoh said that the railway at the Umuahia axis was not abandoned as speculated, but was in the process of revitalisation by the Federal Government.
“The Federal Government is doing everything possible to revamp the tracks, through the effort of our Managing Director, Dr Kayode Opeifa, and his team.
“They are working round the clock to ensure that the Eastern railway axis is restored.
“Some of he rail tracks were removed because they were outdated, but the government wants to replace them with a modern narrow gauge.
“The Port Harcourt-Aba axis is already revamped and functional, we are hoping that it will be extended to Umuahia and entire Eastern corridor soon,” he said
Odoh said he looked forward to seeing a functional railway system, where a train would run within the Eastern corridor down to the North.
Another member of staff of the corporation, Mr Festus Okeke, appealed to the government to act fast in fixing the rail gauge in order to ease transportation challenge in the region.
Okeke, who is the NRC Ticket Master, confirmed that the railway tracks were properly secured, adding that a particular company was in charge of the security of the property.
“We need standard gauge as seen in the some parts of the North, the Lagos to Ibadan.
“However, if that is not possible, let them fix the narrow gauge for us.
“The workers are not happy that they are coming to work everyday without doing anything.
“If there is train, people will rejoice, at least, transport-wise because it is a cheaper and safer means of transportation,” Okeke said.
A businessman, Mr Chima Udechukwu, decried the non-functional of the rail system at the Umuahia axis, saying that it has compounded the transportation of goods in the region.
Udechukwu, who deals in food stuffs in Umuahia, expressed great displeasure that the railway has turned to dump site.
“I feel so sad whenever I pass through the railway axis in Umuahia because bush and hoodlums have taken over the once a bustling place.
“In the late 1990s, I was a regular passenger on train because I was using it to transport my goods, like rice and garri, from Ugboka in Enugu State down to Umuahia.
“Unfortunately, we can’t see it any longer and this problem has contributed to the hike in cost of goods, especially here in Umuahia, because the commercial vehicles charge higher,” he said
The NAN correspondent, who visited the area reports that only patches of the tracks were seen while some crops have been planted along the axis.
Traders also display wares along the corridor while some other parts have been turned into refuse dumps. (NAN)(www.nannews.ng)