By Adelola Amihere
Visibly unimpressed by the pace of work especially with the completion of the train stations along the Lagos to Ibadan rail line and the Ebute Metta to Apapa section of the rail project, the Minister of Transportation, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi has said he would henceforth refrain from giving any date for the completion of the project.
The Minister stated this while fielding questions from journalists after the monthly inspection of the rail project in company of the Minister of State for Transportation, Senator Gbemisola Saraki and the Governor of Oyo State, Engr Seyi Makinde yesterday in Ibadan.
He said: “On the April-May deadline, I can’t answer that question. When you ask them, they still tell you it’s true. Let me not continue to give you a date and getting to that date, we are not there. They are being political. When I complained the last time, they said minor stations will be completed in April. They won’t talk about the major stations.
“It’s a mixed bag. In some stations, you are impressed in others you are not. Last time we came here, we had to suspend work because they were using what we refer to as stone dust now they are using balace to do the foundation. Not much happened at Abeaokuta Station.
“The worst is from Ebute Metta to Apapa. That is painful and that will be the focus from now henceforth. All sort of excuses. I have asked to meet with Nigeria Port Authority on Thursday or Friday to resolve those issues.”
The Minister while applauding the China Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC) for the completion of the laying of tracks to Ibadan however admitted that the Lagos terrain was a major issue to the completion of the Apapa axis.
“If it’s in terms of tracks, it’s 100%. Apart from Ebute Metta but what you must know is that there are two contracts here. The first contract is from Ebute Metta to Ibadan.
“The second contract is from Ebute Metta to Apapa Seaport which is about 6km. And that’s where we have been having problems. If you have been following this inspection, we have always had problems with Lagos because of the urban nature of Lagos.
“We have a lot of demolition to do, you have to deal with pipes, you have to deal with oil pipes even when you get to the sea port but in terms of tracks from Agege to Ibadan, it was smooth”, he explained.
On his part, the Governor of Oyo state who described the rail project as impressive stated that it was a wake-up call for the state.
According to him, “For us, in Oyo state, it is a wake-up call because the track is already here. So, we need to brace up ourselves with what we have to do as a state government so that the handshake can seamless and everything can be done smoothly.
“With the rail, it will boost our economy and people can work in Lagos and live in Ibadan. Students can attend our schools here. So, it will decongest Lagos and help improve our own economy and get help us get out of Lagos shadow”.
