Anxiety gripped the nation’s maritime stakeholders Monday, as the haulage train transporting 20 containers from Lagos to Inland Container Nigeria Limited (ICNL) depots in Kano and Kaduna states, broke down at Mopa, a town in Kogi state.

The breakdown is coming on the maiden journey in the deal by the Nigerian Rail Way Corporation (NRC) to evacuate containers at the ports last Friday after a 16-year break, has raising doubts over the efficiency of container haulage from the ports.

The train freighting 20 units of 40 foot containers, departed Lagos Ports Complex, Apapa for Kano and Kaduna after an elaborate ceremony, presided over by chairman of NRC board, Kawu Baraje.

Confirming the incident, a top management staff of ICNL, owners of the depots where the cargoes should be delivered, told **Daily Independent** on Monday, that the containers were yet to arrive the Kano, because it broke down in Mopa, about 330 km flight distance from Lagos.

The official lamented: “The NRC brought a bad train to carry containers and has broken down in Mopa.”

More worrisome, the source added, is the fact that this maiden trip involving the haulage of 20 units of containers is a far cry from the anticipated size of the business, and indeed a major setback for ICNL.

When contacted on Monday, NRC spokesman, David Ndakotsu denied knowledge of any incident involving its train, saying that, “I am not aware of that, I will find out. If the train breaks down, I should know as head of PR department.”

When asked why the train was yet to arrive destination since take off on Friday, Ndakotsu said, “it is a cargo train and does not have the speed of a passenger train.”

Managing director of NRC, Adeseyi Sijuwade enthused at the flag off ceremony that “this day will go down in the annals of history of the corporation as a day we recommenced NRC’s active participation in the lifting of container cargoes fronm the ports to hinterland and in enhancing the ports decongestion drive.”

Four locomotives were also launched at the ceremony, which NRC claims were acquired brand new.

Stakeholders in the sector however debunked the claim, describing the engines as refurbished, urging the corporation to engage in honest procurement if they would encourage patronage from those who current rely on the nation’s dilapidated roads, for haulage of goods, including petroleum products across the country.

Source:http://www.dailyindependentnig.com/2013/08/anxiety-as-container-laden-lagos-kano-train-stranded/

why is it so hard to do simple things in Nigeria? Just to get a cargo train from Lagos to Kano is a big problem for us?

Speculations. The NRC is yet to make a statement on that. People should desist from unfounded insinuations

OMG! Bwahahahaha! This is a disgrace to president Jonathan and his cabinet.
I pray this isn't true because I may start to change my mind.

Is there any rail passing through Mopa in kogi state from lagos to kano? I doubt that.

Where are the fresh air people, especially sincerenigerian? I was rooting for them to get this right, but as usual they never disappoint. This is what happens when things are done for the camera rather than a genuine desire to change.
They couldn't even get the 20 measly containers to the north! What a shame.

I hope the guy who wrote about his conversation with a road dancing azonto will come back and give us a feedback about what the road is thinking now.

The whole thing was set up as a propaganda piece.
All they are doing is wasting people's time and the country's resources.
The job needed to revatilize virtually every sector of the country's economy can only be done through proper strategic planning .
Stage by stage ,process by process approach.
You cannot just wake up and wish things to suddenly happen and continue awarding contracts arbitrarily.
Nigeria needs a 21st century administrator with a proper penny by penny ,level by level state by state plan in order to get it moving.
Practical and simple solution to the country's problems.
One thing for sure,You are not going to get it in PDP

bloggernaija: The whole thing was set up as a propaganda piece.
All they are doing is wasting people's time and the country's resources.
The job needed to revatilize virtually every sector of the country's economy can only be done through proper strategic planning .
Stage by stage ,process by process approach.
You cannot just wake up and wish things to suddenly happen and continue awarding contracts arbitrarily.
Nigeria needs a 21st century administrator with a proper penny by penny ,level by level state by state plan in order to get it moving.
Practical and simple solution to the country's problems.
One thing for sure,You are not going to get it in PDP

..


Well said...

It was just a propaganda for the next election, what a shame. Now they will have to carry all containers on their heads

The thing is,they lack personal and worldly sophistication on top of gross incompetence.

They know thy are corrupt and incompetent and while trying to show that they are not, they turn around and exhibit the same corruption and incompetence by staging for propaganda instead of taking their time and making genuine effort to get things right.


You can not hind corruption and incompetence especially if it's all you are about from top to bottom..

Containers have not been moved on that track in the last 17 years. If there are issues on the road on its maiden trip, the same NRC that worked day and night to revive a service that was DEAD for 17 years, will fix it.

I know some people are notorious for celebrating BAD NEWS but hey, this is not one.

Meanwhile, the NRC has not even confirmed the development.

The NRC has been procuring more locomotives to met up with demand. Even on that same friday, four more locomotives were launched. Another 200 is expected by December. It can only get better

Sincere 9gerian: [s]Containers have not been moved on that track in the last 17 years. If there are issues on the road on its maiden trip, the same NRC that worked day and night to revive a service that was DEAD for 17 years, will fix it.

I know some people are notorious for celebrating BAD NEWS but hey, this is not one.

Meanwhile, the NRC has not even confirmed the development.

The NRC has been procuring more locomotives to met up with demand. Even on that same friday, four more locomotives were launched. Another 200 is expected by December. It can only get better[/s]

Please shut up with your dumb and unintelligent rant.

You are like a damn noisy robot with lousy programing..

Sincere 9gerian: Containers have not been moved on that track in the last 17 years. If there are issues on the road on its maiden trip, the same NRC that worked day and night to revive a service that was DEAD for 17 years, will fix it.

I know some people are notorious for celebrating BAD NEWS but hey, this is not one.

Meanwhile, the NRC has not even confirmed the development.

The NRC has been procuring more locomotives to met up with demand. Even on that same friday, four more locomotives were launched. Another 200 is expected by December. It can only get better

Abeg hold it. If you want to revive a particular sector, bring the best brains and engineers to do it. Don't gather half baked literates from colleges of education and tell them to revive the rail tracks, etc.
If Jonathan wanted to get this done. He should have brought the best people to work on it, so once the project is completed, we won't hear of any bad news again.
I am tired of progressing and going back. I bet another money would be allocated just to fix that up.
Corrupion caused all this. Instead of repairing the rail sector wholistically, money allocated for it was not well utilized, now it has broken down, more money would surely be pumped in there in order to fix it up.
As a result, the rich will be getting richer. Smh.

Sincere 9gerian: Containers have not been moved on that track in the last 17 years. If there are issues on the road on its maiden trip, the same NRC that worked day and night to revive a service that was DEAD for 17 years, will fix it.

I know some people are notorious for celebrating BAD NEWS but hey, this is not one.

Meanwhile, the NRC has not even confirmed the development.

The NRC has been procuring more locomotives to met up with demand. Even on that same friday, four more locomotives were launched. Another 200 is expected by December. It can only get better

I can't laugh. Despite all the fanfare the NRC did not know the tracks had not been used for 17 years and they embarked on a voyage they proclaimed a landmark achievement!
C'mon this is gross incompetence. What was all the fanfare for? to hoodwink Nigerians once more?

asala1: Is there any rail passing through Mopa in kogi state from lagos to kano? I doubt that.

@naptu I need you on this thread...can you confirm the above question?

Can't help it but to lauf it out loud inside brt bus from V.I to tbs , fresh air!

Sufficient simulated test-runs should have been carried out on the tracks and locomotives used to ensure things like this are avoided.

Horus: It was just a propaganda for the next election, what a shame. Now they will have to carry all containers on their heads

So not all nigerians are fool even though PDP had repeatedly called us one.
Ok, I'm encouraged.

Proper and adequate testing should have been done. We have to change the way we do things in this country.

osundefender in disguise.

Train is covered with the blood of Jesus! All the demons will be soaked with the blood of Jesus and it will cold their body well well.

The vultures needs leftover carcasses to survive. The desire for failure is the mark of retrogression and degenerated souls feast on bad news.

If good development no matter how small is the cause for bitterness to some people then let them suffer heartaches.

Why is there anxiety now when the same containers were always stranded on our gully infested highways for so many days before reaching their destinations.

ba7man: Sufficient simulated test-runs should have been carried out on the tracks and locomotives used to ensure things like this are avoided.

Is it not the same track that has been in use since December when the Kano-Lagos express train services was flagged off? The men and women in NRC are not fools. If there are mechanical issues on the way, they have the capacity to fix it and move on. There's no point celebrating every button that mal-functions in the Nigeria Railways. Even in aviation, which is the most regulated sector the world over, things do go wrong.

What is wrong and strange in a mechanical engine to have fault and break down!?
If these kind of things don't happen why in the world should NRC employ,pay and have mechanical engineers in its work force!

Even multinational companies report factory fault from their carefully crafted works!

All these bad news vultures! I wonder what u gain by praying for bad news to happen!? Is nigeria not ur country again! Smh

Imagine these bitter beasts wishing things get worse. Good news give them heartache but negative news is celebrated to high heavens. For your information, you guys will develop high blood pressure because this administration will continue to embarrass you with transformation projects as it is doing.

This piece of shit sef might even be fake. These haters can fabricate anything.

Tusky44:

Train is covered with the blood of Jesus

Unfortunately for you, you need more than blood of Jesus to conquer incompetence and corruption talk less make that train make it to Kano...

Btw,I though some ibo loud mouth said 70% of the goods entering Nigeria heads to the east? Another shallow monkey chest beating I guess..

After 17yrs of non usage of the tracks for container haulage a few hitches is allowed if the train broke down it will be fixed and the journey completed.
efficiency on the freight will be attained gradually. kudos to this administration for revamping the railway.

Ngwakwe: The vultures needs leftover carcasses to survive. The desire for failure is the mark of retrogression and degenerated souls feast on bad news.

If good development no matter how small is the cause for bitterness to some people then let them suffer heartaches.

Why is there anxiety now when the same containers were always stranded on our gully infested highways for so many days before reaching their destinations.

Your perceived vultures and bitter people are not responsibly for the incompetence and corruption preventing that train from reaching it's destination in Kano so why misplace blame?

Was the contract awarded to the bitter people and vultures or are they in charge of the project?

The only culprits here are the corrupt and incompetent people in charge.

Even you yourself sounds mentally corrupt, lazy and incompetent for that silly comment...

ujoinme: After 17yrs of non usage of the tracks for container haulage a few hitches is allowed if the train broke down it will be fixed and the journey completed.
efficiency on the freight will be attained gradually. kudos to this administration for revamping the railway.

Very pathetic..

Kudos to corruption and incompetence. Federal government of Nigeria can not move 20 car train from point A to point B?

Abeg cover your face...

GEJ has done in 2 yrs what OBJ couldn't do in 8ys for NRC

agbameta:


Very pathetic..

Kudos to corruption and incompetence. Federal government of Nigeria can not move 20 car train from point A to point B?

Abeg cover your face...

Why don't you first remove this log of corruption from your APC god fathers eyes before you concern yourself with the speck if any in GEJs eyes. Incase you did not see the log as evident of sycophants like you, i will help you : here



Tinubu and Fashola
Tinubu and Fashola: accused by citizen of huge fraud
A list tagged The Tinubu List has been forwarded to the Liberty Report by a citizen who claimed that the contents of the list constitute ill-gotten assets traceable to the strongman of Lagos politics, Bola Ahmed Tinubu. The Liberty Report has no independent way of authenticating the alleged corruption list. An email enquiry sent to the office of the governor of Lagos State was not responded to as at press time. The List is being published as a matter of public interest. Those accused in the list are public figures.

The sender said he challenged Bola Tinubu or the EFCC to disprove the content. The list is reproduced below.

THE TINUBU LIST – UNEDITED
1. 4, Oyinkan Abayomi (formerly Queens) Drive, Ikoyi: A 5-bedroom detached house on one acre of land which was originally the Lagos State Governor’s guest house since 1979, but which now belongs to Tinubu. The certificate of occupancy of the property valued at N450 million was signed and released to him by Fashola in 2007 shortly after he assumed office.

2. Tinubu’s residence at 26 Bourdillon Road, Ikoyi was initially falsely presented as Oando Plc Guest House. Later, he purportedly bought it from Oando, and used public funds to rebuild and renovate it. The Lagos State Government bought the property and paid an undisclosed sum to him and thereafter gave the property back to him under the bogus Pension Bill he signed to law shortly before he left office in 2007. The property is worth over N600 million.

3. The annex of the Lagos State Guest House in Asokoro, Abuja was bought by the State Government in 2006 for N450 million, purportedly to protect the main house from security breach. Shortly after Tinubu left office, the property was transferred to him under the pension plan he signed into law before leaving office.

4. The 250-hectare land valued at about N35billion and strategically located at the Ajah junction on Lekki Road was initially meant for a General Hospital for the people of Eti-Osa Local Government but was stolen by Tinubu and handed over to Trojan Estate Ltd – a company owned by Deji and Wale Tinubu – to develop as Royal Garden Housing Estate at the expense of the taxpayers of Lagos.

5. The 1,000 hectares of land valued at about N75billion located at Lakowe near Abijo at Ibeju-Lekki Local Government and given to Lekki Concession Company (LCC) which is partly- owned by Tinubu and Fashola and being developed as golf course and housing estate by Assets and Resource Management Ltd (ARM) as ADIVA project.

6. The prime land of 157 hectares with 2.5km of Atlantic beachfront valued at about N10billion and stolen by Tinubu from the communities of Siriwon, Igbekodo, Apakin, etc in Ibeju-Lekki Local Government and given to Ibukun Fakeye – his crony to build a golf course and luxury villa with little or no compensation to the villagers. In addition, Tinubu paid $20million (N3billion) out of public treasury to Ibukun Fakeye to commence the project in late 2006. Fashola has since released additional funding for this project, which is not owned by the state government.

7. The 14-hectare Parkview Ikoyi Estate foreshore land reclaimed by Lagos State Government is now owned by Bola Tinubu.

8. While in office, he allocated to himself the former Strabag yard beside the Lagos State Secretariat at Alausa, Ikeja. The property is now being developed into a shopping mall as big as the Palms in Lekki. This is public property brazenly stolen and now owned by Tinubu, aided by Fashola.

9. The choice property at Lekki-Epe road on which he built and owns the multi-billion naira Oriental Hotel and the extension of multi-storey car park beside it. Also, the multi-level recreation centre by Mobil in Oniru Estate on Lekki-Epe road jointly owned with ARM and Tunji Olowolafe. All these assets valued at over N25billion were obtained without paying a kobo to the Lagos State Government.

10. Tinubu and Fashola sold the following prime Lagos properties to their personal friend and front – Prince Dipo Eludoyin at very ridiculous prices:

• The 3.8-hectare of land of Lagos State Fisheries office in VI (beside the Institute of Oceanography) valued at N3billion.

• The fishery landing jetty at Badore (where the Ilubirin fishermen were to be relocated) valued at N500million

• The entire Ogudu foreshore scheme initially earmarked for a low-cost housing scheme valued at N5billion

• The Ilubinrin housing estate (which used to house Lagos state civil servants and judges up till 2007) valued at N2.5billion.

• The former Julius Berger yard at Oko Orisan, Epe valued at N450million.

11. Tinubu raised a loan of N4.7billion on Eko Akete project for which nothing was achieved before he turned around to sell the property to his Chagouri friends of Chagouri & Chagouri and Hitech Construction Ltd at a ridiculously low price at the expense of the taxpayers of Lagos.

12. Tinubu applied to personally purchase the Federal Secretariat building while in office. When he couldn’t get to buy it, he directed Fashola to stop the eventual owner of the complex to develop it. The complex is presently wasting away courtesy of the Lagos State Government.

13. It took several months of horse trading and underhand payments before Fashola could allow the new owners of 1004 flats to redevelop the complex.

14. Several other buyers of Federal Government properties and developers of properties in Ikoyi, Victoria Island and Government Reservation Area Ikeja were forced to succumb to the outrageous demands of Tinubu, Fashola, Commissioner Abosede and other officials of the Lagos State Physical Planning Ministry and were made to pay ridiculous amounts to private accounts before their redevelopments were approved. Those who refused or were unable to pay could not develop their properties. This is a major economic strangulation of property developers and has contributed largely to the skyrocketing rent in Ikoyi, VI and Lekki axis.

15. Tinubu converted all the plots of land where Lagos Polytechnic was located at Ikosi near the old toll gate. He chased away the Polytechnic in 2006 and went ahead to locate the choice plots to himself, his cronies and political associates. The headquarters of Television Continental (TVC), which is owned by him, is located there. He deprived the youths of Lagos of decent education because of his greed.

16. Tinubu singlehandedly sold the prime land on Aboyade Cole, Victoria Island which was recovered from some allotees, to UACN Properties Plc. The amount of proceeds was shrouded in secrecy.

17. Eludoyin, fronting for Tinubu, built the estate directly opposite Goshen Beach Estate in Lekki area.

18. Tinubu’s wife, Remi Tinubu, built the massive New Era Foundation youth camp at the junction of Eleko, off the Lekki-Epe express road, with Lagos State funds and has now converted it to personal use.

19. Tinubu owns the Fara Park Estate and the Beach Wood Estate both in Lekki.

20. The Critical Care unit at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) in Ikeja, built and equipped with state funds, is now owned personally by Tinubu. He has put one Dr. Sikiru Tinubu, (a supposed cousin of his) to run the outfit. It is run as a private unit and the proceeds are pocketed by the duo. The unit charges its users exorbitantly and most Lagosians can hardly afford to pay its high charges. Much of the revenue is derived from fees paid by the State Government for patients referred there by its General Hospitals.

21. Several prominent Nigerians in the judiciary, police, INEC, and other sensitive agencies have obtained prime land from former Governor Tinubu and incumbent Governor Fashola over the years without paying a kobo. Many of them had turned around to sell the land to third parties at substantial profit. Many top officials in the police, INEC and the judiciary who participated in the 2003 and 2007 elections and tribunals in states where Tinubu has interest were compromised with parcels of free prime Lagos land and cash. If the Lagos State Land’s Bureau could publish the names and identities of beneficiaries of land allotees from 2000 to date, the scandal that will result is better imagined. Gbenga Ashafa, now a Senator, and Mrs. Awofisayo were the conduits through which these acts were being perpetrated. Both were also personally involved in various dubious land transactions on their own.

22. Prime land and properties have been used to pay off public officials who are personally close to Tinubu and Fashola for “jobs well done” or for being privy to sensitive information, notably:

(a) Dele Alake, former Commissioner for Information and Strategy, was sold a whole house on Alexander Road, Ikoyi where he lived as official quarters at a give-away price.


http://myondostate.com/w3/shocking-curuption-list-citizen-reveals-tinubus-alleged-assets-challenges-efcc-to-disprove-list/

^^^

Who is slowpoke that copied and pasted this nonsense. Are you blind?

Here is the key to unlock the truth you seek:

[size=16pt]The Liberty Report has no independent way of authenticating the alleged corruption list[/size]

ujoinme:
[s]

Why don't you first remove this log of corruption from your APC god fathers eyes before you concern yourself with the speck if any in GEJs eyes. Incase you did not see the log as evident of sycophants like you, i will help you : here
[/s]

Go and learn how to read and comprehend. Don't tell me your only portion in life is to peddle alleged rubbish all over the place.

Don't pollute the thread with your reterdeen ways and stay away if you can not stay on topic.


Don't you have any better calling in life....