Insecurity, high diesel price: NRC loses N3.33bn over shut-down of Lagos-Kano, Abuja-Kaduna routes

…As passengers abandon services for fear of attack

…Bandits vandalizing tracks, ready to attack any train on rail lines — Ajiji

The Federal Government has lamented the loss of N3.33 billion for the disruption of the operations of Railway service in the country over the recent high cost of Diesel as well as increased spate of kidnapping and killings, Nigerian NewsDirect reports.

The fear of attacks on these rail lines have prevented many travelers from abandoning journeys by rail for other alternatives of transportation.

Recall that about eight persons have so far been confirmed dead and 41 hospitalised in the recent attack on the Kaduna bound train.

“We don’t have all the figures of missing persons, kidnapped and those injured at the moment.

“The numbers we have is that there are eight casualties. There are about 41 persons in different hospitals and the total number of passengers who got tickets were 398,” former minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi had said in the aftermath of the attack.

While speaking with Nigerian NewsDirect, the president, Nigerian Union of Railway Workers (NURW) Innocent Ajiji disclosed that patronage of railway services has reduced, making the government to lose millions of Naira every day.

According to an official who spoke with Nigerian NewsDirect yesterday, the monthly generation was within N450/470 million before. However, the revenue has dropped to about N100 million a month, creating a deficit of N370 million monthly.

By implication, having shut down operations since March, if necessary security measures are not put in place to nip kidnapping and banditry in the bud as well as introduce necessary economic mechanisms to bring down the price of Diesel, the federal government may lose N3.33 billion y the end of this year.

“We cannot abandon our railway because of insecurity. The government must live up to its primary responsibility to citizens — the protection of lives and property.  I believe it can be done with the right commitment and strategy,” he stated.

Speaking with one of our correspondents yesterday, Ajiji said, “Before the attacks on all these trains, we had been generating quite a good amount of money, which amounted on a monthly basis, approximately we generated about 450-470 million naira monthly.”

The current disruption in the services of the Railway system may also be attributed to the recent escalated price of Diesel, Ajiji explained.

“Since this event and even the cost of diesel we have been running at loss, and even immediately after the attack passengers reduced patronage on Warri, Lagos and Ibadan trains,” he said.

Speaking further, he said the terrorists have even begun vandalising rail lines and threatening any train plying rail lines, making the authority to reduce traveling and shutdown operations such as the Kaduna-Abuja and Lagos-Kano rail lines.

“Due to the same insecurities we have to suspend running of the Lagos-Kano trains. If you go along the line you will find out that the bandit has vandalized our tracks and even at some points they are there ready to attack any train that comes on our rail-lines,” he said.

He added, “That was why the trains on the narrow way between Lagos and Kano were suspended.”

Further speaking on the reduction of revenue of NRC, he said, “I don’t think we generated up to N100 million in a month, between the time of the attack till date because the patronage of Lagos-Ibadan train stopped and we have to reduce the number of trains we run in a day.

“Then added to the cost of fuel, at times we put a train that goes to Lagos and Kano and fuel it for 4million naira, we hardly generate 1.5 or 2 million naira, so who does that kind of business. We are seriously affected by these bandit activities.”

Calling for urgent actions, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise (CPPE), Dr Muda Yusuf said the continuous loss of revenue underscores why Federal Government should step-up its fight against terrorism and banditry.

According to him, “These developments underscore the need for the government to step up its offensive against terrorism and other forms of insecurity.

“We cannot abandon our railways because of insecurity. The government must live up to its primary responsibility to citizens — the protection of lives and property.  I believe it can be done with the right commitment and strategy,” he stated.

Amb. (Dr.) Oamien Roy Okhidievbie,  National Secretary, Retired Members of Nigerian Armed Forces (REMENAF), National Publicity Secretary, Association of Licensed Private Security Practitioners of Nigeria. (ALPSPN); Director Media, Coalition of Concerned Military Veterans (CCV) said terrorism is a global strategy to incapacitate an existing governance system and institute the lawlessness of armed

He said, “The groups under a name and agenda. Oftentimes we find such groups hoisting flags and creating their own uniforms and army to terrorize citizens of a country.

“Nigeria has fallen into the unfortunate category of countries that has been compromised between 30-40 percent control by insurgents, bandits and terrorist organizations. This is a statistical fact from the crippling of transportation, education, agricultural activities and social life.

“Currently, we have found ourselves where we least expect and the security agencies will shrink daily by the political negative impact and control. The strength of our military and the intelligence of our policing have all been compromised.

“There is no error of judgment to conclude that a lot was spent on our railway line and a lot was also expected. The opportunity for economic recovery and expansion into and between communities.

“This started to generate traction and many farmers took advantage and took loans too to increase production.

“The roads were bedeviled with pockets of criminality and successful escapades by bandits against travelers and villages on the outskirts.

“This prompted the increase for rail lines transportation. It’s unfortunate that the government failed to equate its investment strategies to encompass the risk parameters and mitigate risk management policies to drive counter insurgency and counter terrorism plans.

“There are multiple enshrined opportunities to curb criminal activities on our rail lines.

“During the construction of the rail lines so many Private security practitioners proffered multidimensional solutions to the government but obviously they were unable to see the light of day.

“I still have the acknowledgment copy of the proposal I sent to the Inspector General of Police which also met a brick wall.

“There are solutions to revive the trains and secure the rail lines from vandalism and attacks on the trains. Global best practices and local content strategies.

“The good thing about this is that it gives the government strong reasons to evade the international Human Rights catastrophe and deal decisively with criminal elements in every facet of our society.

“The opportunity for crime to get audacious and emboldened lies is the willingness of the government to implement measures that will deploy the active tactics and ensure peaceful, stable, effective and efficient deployment strategies.

“Security is everyone’s responsibility and we must hope that one day the government will brace up to its responsibilities,” he stated.

Another official within the Railway service, who did not want his name mentioned in the media because he was not authorized to do so, stated that the insecurity leveraging the country has been compromised by top security personnel in the country.

He argued that the railway attack a few months ago was coordinated criminal acts, carried out through connivances between the bandits and security personnel.

The unwholesome act has paralyzed the rail route without intervention by the Federal Government as some of the victims of the attack are still under the umbrella of these miscreants.

He emphasized that the government will lose millions of naira because of fear of attacks as passengers have abandoned the railway routes.

The source called for a declaration of state of emergency in the transport system by the federal government to formulate stiffer measures against the threat of attacks on the railway and some major roads across linking the country.