Nigerian railway chooses suspension over improvement and proactive management

Nigerian railway chooses suspension over improvement and proactive management

Nigerian Railway Corporation has given order for the suspension of the Warri-Itakpe rail service. The move will notably affect the output of the country’s transportation services.

Most traders rely on railway for the transportation of massive goods. The Nigerian Railway Corporation has failed to proactively manage the cooperation.

The decision to suspend the regional rail service came amidst the report of derailment that occurred on Thursday, and despite not getting national outcry due to there was no casualties, passengers underwent significant trauma.

The corporation quickly went ahead to shutting down the service of the Warri-Itakpe line, cutting off the line without considering the consequences on the country’s economy. Warri-Itakpe train line is a strategic one in a region without options.

The suspension is simply because the corporation failed to improve and modernise the railway and the trains plying it.

The Southeast region of Nigeria, except Lagos, lacks train services. The regions railway corporation is not getting the due attention it needs to sustain its services. Now that the line has been suspended, Southerners will be heavily and negatively affected.

The reason for the derailment is not yet out, and the line being a reliable route for most Southern for the transportation of goods will be harsh.

There has been a lack of attention on their servicing of railways in some parts of the country, with Southern Nigeria the most neglected.

While the train was travelling along the Itakpe-Warri route, it had a derailment that caused massive injuries without fatalities. While passengers were taken to hospitals for treatment and post-incident trauma, the railway corporation was yet to explain to them what happened.

The country’s railway corporation has deployed engineers and specialists for initial assessment of the train and also to finding out the cause of the incident. The deployment will yield nothing. it’s a clear formality.

The suspension of the train service is a good move, but when it’s a formality, it becomes even a dangerous measure. The suspension is a result of ensuring the safety of passengers and also giving deployed engineers sufficient time to do their job.

The purpose of the suspension and the outcome of the engineers’ inspection will determine how further efforts can be made to ensure safety.

Protocols are not to be blamed for the incident, but the corporation insisted every measure will be explored and applied to ensure such incidents don’t happen again.

The time between the suspension and lifting will earmark economic loss. The suspension will definitely have a negative impact on the economy. The railway line is strategic for the transportation of essential commodities.

Prices of essential commodities have skyrocketed and led to harsh economic situations for the country. It’s a great loss for all the businesses that rely on the railway line. The situation will change the prices of businesses transported through the route in the coming days, weeks, and months.

Road transportation has become even harsher, with high price being the significant reason for the reliance on train. The incessant extortion going on on Nigerian roads will also be a factor that will force hike in the price of goods formerly transported through the suspended railway.

Workers will also be affected because families that work in the rail station and on the train will be temporary out of work, adding to the painful economic situation and high cost of living.

It will be a new challenge as they struggle to find alternative to mitigate the situation that now calls for urgent action. The country can not afford losing the route that eases prices of essential commodities.

The government may have assured the people that Nigerian Railway Corporation will quickly resolve the problem, but there is always delay and sometimes lack of will from the government to promptly addressing it. The necessary actions have been announced, but implementation is another thing in the country.

The expert team has been deployed to the site of the derailment to check and sufficiently assess the situation. The Nigerian Railway Corporation has also promised to find out the issues and make sure the rail line is put back in place for operations before lifting the suspension.

Also, NRC has assured the public will be informed about the work of the investigation and the necessary approach being taken to restore the service.

Booked passengers have been told to go for refunds or wait until the railway has been fixed and everything is restored to normal.

Promises have also come from the NRC that they will work harder to stick by the rules but have yet to update to the public if neglect of rules caused the derailment.

While the suspension is an immediate hurdle for transportation ministry, it calls for the due maintainance and improvement of the Nigerian Railway Corporation. The infrastructural decay of the corporation is responsible for the derailment.

There is no improvement in the need to modernise the corporation through significant investments. The importance of train services can not be overestimated, but less attention from the government tends to destroy the corporation.

However, in the end, the people will bear the consequences of the failed measures to avoid derailment and incidents in the transportation industry.

The country’s fuel price is a massive concern, with moves to substitute the use of fuel topping the chart of the country’s current administration.

Railway services are the most obtainable substitute, but the leadership of the country is lacking the motivation to sufficiently invest in railway services across the country.

The country also has the natural deposit of coal, which is the fuel for the old train being used in the country. But due to attention has not been given to the industry, nobody speaks about the way forward.

With road transportation becoming increasingly difficult for traders, the stress will be reflected in the market.

In the country,  food items have tremendously skyrocketed in prices, and common man finds it hard to eat.

Complaints of hardship perseveres with mass protest being planned in the country against hardship. The protest underscores the main problem facing the country. The government is not working to make things work for the country.