₦airaland Forum

The $1.96bn Kano-Katsina-Jigawa-Maradi rail project is still ongoing despite the recent tensions between Nigeria and the Niger Republic.

Arewa PUNCH reports that the Kano-Katsina-Jigawa-Maradi rail project, which was approved by the Federal Executive Council in September 2020, aims to connect Kano, Katsina, and Jigawa states in Nigeria with Maradi in Niger Republic.

The project is expected to stimulate economic growth, improve transportation, and facilitate trade between Nigeria and the Niger Republic.

In Jigawa State, our correspondent observed during a visit to the project sites that the work on the project has resumed, with workers and equipment actively engaged at the sites.

Residents of villages such as Dundubus, Sabon Garin Dan Malam, as well as Shuwarin, and Andaza towns, in Jigawa, Dutse environ who were interviewed exclusively by Arewa PUNCH Correspondent, expressed their excitement about the project’s progress.

Malam Musa, a resident of Dundubus town, Dutse Local Government area expressed his delight at the resumption of work on the railway project, adding that “it’s our hoped that the project would bring economic benefits and improve transportation in the region.

“We are very happy that the work has started again. We hope that when the project is completed, it will bring economic benefits to our community. We expect to see more businesses and job opportunities,” said Malam Musa.

A trader in Sabon Garin Dan Malam, Nura Garba shared his optimism about the project’s potential impact, saying, “I believe the railway will make it easier for us to transport our goods to other places. It will also attract more customers to our community. We are looking forward to seeing the positive changes it will bring.”

Alhaji Abdullahi Mikaila Shuwarin, a community leader in Shuwarin town, Kiyawa Local Government area emphasised the importance of the project for the region’s development.

According to Alhaji Mikaila, “the railway project is a game-changer for our community. It will connect us to other parts of the country and facilitate trade. We hope that the government will complete the project in good time,” he said.

For Mallam Adamu Aminu, a farmer in Andaza village, Kiyawa Local Government, he highlighted the potential benefits of the project for farmers like himself, saying,

“With the railway, we will be able to transport our farm produce to other markets easily. It will also reduce the cost of transportation. We are hopeful that the project will improve our livelihoods,” Aminu emphasised.

However, our correspondent’s attempts to speak with officials and engineers at the project site at the Jigawa border were unsuccessful, as they declined to comment, saying they didn’t have the company’s approval and authorisation to speak on official matters.

In spite of that, when pressed further, a field worker who begged for anonymity later confirmed to Arewa PUNCH in confidence at the project site on Friday that the work had stopped for some time but resumed upper week.

“We’re working on clearing the way for the rail line and erecting bridges. Our equipment is busy bringing sand, equipment, and materials to the site before we start installing the main railline,” he said.

Another worker, who also does not want his name in print because he is not authorised to speak to the press over the issue, nonetheless disclosed that the project, which was initially handled by the “Water Engine” Company, is now being executed by the Chinese Communication Construction Company.

The source told Arewa PUNCH “As you can see, the jackets, reflectors, helmets we’re wearing, all of them carry the name of the main company ‘Water Engine’,” the anonymous worker met at the site disclosed.

When asked about the location of the main rail station for the Dutse rail line in Jigawa State, the source clarified, “there were conflicting reports as some officials mentioned that other it would be located in Shuwarin town, while others said it would be located in Andaza town, according to the contract map.”

After several attempts to reach the Jigawa State Coordinator of the Federal Ministry of Works, for his comment on the project, our correspondent’s efforts in that regard were in vain as he could not be reached.

However, a secretary at the Jigawa State Coordinator’s office confirmed that the coordinator was out of office for some official engagements but that the work on the railway project had indeed resumed.

“The coordinator is out of the office today (Friday), he’s currently out of the state for Abuja for an official business related to the office,” the secretary confirmed to our correspondent over the phone.

madridguy:
Since they're still unidentified then how come they tagged them as Nigerians? What if they're from Congo or Malawi.

Two unidentified Nigerians have been arrested by the Kuwait General Department of Criminal Investigation in Ahmadi Governorate on suspicion of involvement in an armed robbery.

PUNCH Metro gathered from a Wednesday statement by the Kuwaiti Ministry of Interior, as reported by Arab Times Online, that the suspects were apprehended within 24 hours of carrying out a robbery at an exchange office in Mahboula, a district in the southern part of Kuwait City.

A 35-second video of the robbery, viewed by PUNCH Metro on Wednesday on the Arab Times Online website, shows one of the suspects, wearing a hooded top, exiting a white car before entering the exchange office.

Upon entering the office, the same suspect is seen in a short, inaudible video pointing what appeared to be a gun at the exchange office staff, as observed by our correspondent.

The suspects reportedly stole foreign currencies equivalent to 4,600 Kuwaiti Dinars, valued at approximately $14,918.69, using the currencyconvertonline.com conversion rate.

The report read, “Investigation revealed that the gang meticulously planned the crime, monitoring the exchange offices from nearby rooftops to identify peak times.

“They also used stolen licence plates to conceal the identities of the vehicles involved in the operation.”

One of the suspects, whose name was not disclosed, reportedly confessed after his arrest in Mahboula that he had surveyed the location and informed his accomplice, whose name was also undisclosed, when the office was clear of customers.

“The second suspect was apprehended in the Al-Qurain Market, and the stolen money, along with a small bag containing the narcotic substance ‘crystal meth,’ was recovered from his residence.

“The Ministry of Interior confirmed that the suspects and seized items have been referred to the public prosecution for further legal action,” the report read.

PUNCH Metro recalls that in 2019, some Nigerians were captured on video carrying out an armed robbery in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

During the same period, a Nigerian female drug trafficker, along with three other men, two from Pakistan and one from Yemen, was executed for drug trafficking offences.

The current Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission and former aide to ex-President Muhammadu Buhari on Diaspora Matters, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, had stated in an interview with journalists in Abuja that the executed woman was the eighth person to be executed for drug-related offences in the oil-rich kingdom within the past three years.

He wrote, “The only plan they have in order to win elections in 2027 is to continue to encourage and sponsor bandits, unleash terror to the public space, vandalizing Transmission Lines, sponsoring fake news, etc. It is too late. PBAT is not their mate”.

ndidibabe:
Totally unnecessary. Tinubu won't like the idea...

The Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Taiwo Oyedele has assured Nigerians that the ongoing economic reforms by the Bola Ahmed administration are beginning to yield good results.

Oyedele gave the assurance in his speech while enlightening the audience on the benefits of the ongoing reforms on The Platform organised by the Covenant Nation on Saturday.

He emphasised that removing petrol subsidies is the best decision Nigeria could ever make.

“Removing subsidies is the best decision we made as a country. And we can now say that for once, subsidy is gone.

“We were living on window-dressed realities. If you look back to about two years ago, naira exchange rate was N450 depending on who you asked. But was our exchange rate really N450? If you wanted to buy petrol, it was under N200 per litre, but was it really under N200 per litre?

“There wasnt band A at the time. Electricity was what time at the time, but was that really the price? A country can afford to sell petrol at N200 per litre if you can afford it. But there is everything wrong if you can not afford it.

“I am a parent and will like to send my kids to school. If I can afford a school of N200 million her term, no problem. But if I cannot, they will do just first term and wont be able to continue their education. Maybe they should go to a school of N200, 000 per term.

“So, Nigeria was doing worse than it ought to, and then we had this sense of “our economy was not doing great”. We thought thsat our economy is the largest in Africa.

“Our GDP was around N450 million dollars. We thought our per capita income is about $2, 000 per person but it was not up to that.


“Nigeria used all its revenue to service debts. We were not paying debts back o. we were just servicing it. In order what, everything other thing we did, from paying salaries to fighting Boko Haram, we were just borrowing.

“When Nigeria borrowed, we borrowed high digits and those were the funds we were using to run the economy and service debts.

“If anybody was not losing his sleep with just that alone, then, he must be from another planet. The outcome of what was happening was predictable. It was a Sri Lanka happening to us. It was a Venezuela.

“Their countries were that- you would hold money and you wouldn’t be able to get fuel to buy. There was a tile in Sri Lanka that you couldn’t drive your car everyday of the week because there was no fuel.

“Our GDP growth rate was very low. Over the past ten years less than 10 per cent. If you do it in real time, it was negative.

He explained that the Nigerian government had resorted to printing of money to spend, which according to him was the worst any country could ever do.

“Ways and Means was high. We were printing money to spend. We couldn’t borrow abroad because they said lending us was risky. We didn’t have cash flow. And the capacity to borrow locally was low. So we were printing money to spend, and that is even dangerous.

“We printed close to N40 trillion naira plus interest. And we were surprised there was inflation. Nigerians don’t realise that the invisible controls the visible. And that is because the removal of subsidies is not seen physically. It is not something you can touch.

“Even some airlines stopped flying to Nigeria because of the backlog of FX debt to foreign airlines.

He advised Nigerians to have a positive outlook on the country.

“There is nothing wrong with Nigeria. But maybe there is something wrong with the people ruling Nigeria.

“In America, people get killed every day by gunmen. But have you ever heard Americans say “May America never happen to you?’

Let’s stop saying “May Nigeria never happen to you’. Maybe we can turn it into “May Nigeria work for me”

“Going by available data, I personally believe that the worst is behind us, he said.

Since assuming office in May 2023, President Tinubu has implemented a number of reforms such as the removal of fuel subsidies and introduction of the controversial tax bills.

The removal of fuel subsidies has since spiralled into increase in prices of goods and services.

SalamRushdie:
Instead of building a super rail line to connect Abuja to Lagos see what ApC is doing...the Maradi rail line means no good for this country

Feelers from officials of the federal government have revealed that the current diplomatic face-off between Nigeria and Niger Republic won’t affect the rail modernisation project from Kano (Nigeria) to Maradi (Niger Republic).

Recently, Niger’s foreign minister, Bakary Yaou Sangare summoned the chargé d’affaires at the Nigerian embassy, accusing the federal government of oiling efforts to destabilise the junta-led nation.

The crisis is a fallout of the larger spat between Niger and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which led to Niger alongside Burkina Faso and Mali pulling out of the regional bloc over military coups in the three Sahelian countries.

Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu is the chair of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of States and Governments and under his leadership, the regional bloc threatened to invade Niger to restore the democratic government of Mohamed Bazoum, toppled by the military in June 2023.

This decision infuriated the military leaders and in solidarity with their fellow coup plotters in Burkina Faso and Mali, announced their decision to quit ECOWAS in January 2024. They have stuck to their guns and rejected all entreaties to return to the regional organisation even after ECOWAS withdrew its threats and lifted a raft of sanctions imposed on Niger.

Despite the strained relationship, the minister of transportation, Senator Sa’idu Alkali, has said the “project is ongoing and will be completed in due time.”

The minister, at the ongoing budget defence before the National Assembly, gave the breakdown of the work done on the project, stressing that over 100km of earthworks had been completed.

Alkali said the contractors had constructed one railway bridge, 125 culverts, and three frame bridges.

He added that the contractors had developed 57km of drainage systems, noting that with the 2025 budget, all the outstanding work at the ministry would receive adequate attention.

While defending the 2025 N225.744 billion of the ministry and its agencies before the joint committees of the Senate and the House of Representatives on Land Transport, he said the ministry and its agencies have resolved to work hard at ensuring the realisation of Nigeria’s Integrated Infrastructure Master plan.

According to him, the Kano-Maradi railway project has reached 35 per cent completion.

At a different forum, the Ambassador of Portugal to Nigeria, Paulo Santos, the home country of the contractor handling the project, had explained that the work was going on according to specifications as the project is expected to be completed by the end of next year.

He had said that the construction work is currently at Dutse in Katsina State as they intend to cover 320km out of a total of 400km.

The Kano-Maradi railway project costs over $1.9 billion; that is N400 billion, where the federal government is to pay 15 percent of the project and source 85 per cent of funds through a loan, which the government would pay within a 50-year duration.

The railway will connect Kano to Jigawa State, on the northern border of Nigeria, and extend to Maradi, Niger. In addition, a new branch line will be constructed from Kano to Dutse in Jigawa State, Nigeria.

The new railway line, with 13 stations, will span three states: Kano, Jigawa and Katsina, and extend to Niger.

PresidObi:
Governors are now controlling Dss?
Or you are here telling us that the Dss are biased and are working more in some parts of Nigeria than the other parts?

Details of the operations of the Department of State Services, which led to the arrest of 10 suspected members of Boko Haram/Islamic State’s West Africa Province in Ilesa, Osun State, have been revealed.

The operation was carried out at an old bungalow building close to St. Mary Catholic Church, Ifofin, and Ogbon Idio, Ilesa, in the Ilesa-East Local Government Area of the state.

Saturday PUNCH gathered that the raid happened around 1am on December 16, 2024, and was carried out by a team of DSS operatives numbering about 30.

News about the arrest of the suspects became public knowledge on January 10, when the DSS sought an order from a Federal High Court in Abuja to detain them for 60 days.

The suspects are Adamu Abubakar (aka Abu Aisha), Babagana Bashuli, Muhammed Adam, Mustapha Abacha, Katuru Muhammed, Babakura Abacha, Muhammed Ciroma, Ali Gambo, Muhammed Umoru, and Muhammed Bundi.

According to the DSS, the suspects were arrested while undergoing training on how to manufacture and detonate explosives, disclosing that its preliminary investigation revealed that the respondents were members of the Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorist group.

Our correspondents reliably gathered that the operation, which led to their arrest, lasted 90 days and was carried out by two different teams from the DSS headquarters.

The first team, according to sources, arrived in Ilesa in late September, while the second team arrived in mid-November 2024.


“Osun command was not involved in the operation because the first signal on the activities of members of ISWAP in Ilesa was compromised,” a source said.

Sharing his knowledge of the operation with Saturday PUNCH on Thursday, another highly credible source said, “The operation was carried out in the wee hours of that day at Ifofin, Ilesa, and it went well. There was no gunshot at all, and that prevented people from knowing about it.

“The undercover agents arrived in Ilesa last September 2024. They lived and interacted with people in the area and were able to pin down the exact location of the suspects.

“After confirming the locale and the activities of the suspects, a tactical team was sent from the headquarters, and the officers understudied the environment for another 30 days. The suspects were arrested with ISWAP materials and bomb-making equipment.

“None of the personnel who carried out the operation lived in Osun, and the majority of them left immediately after they arrested the suspects. The last batch of the team left last Saturday.”

The officer told Saturday PUNCH that after the operation, some senior officers of the service, including the ‘PSO’, were transferred from Osun to other states.

According to him, about 150 personnel had earlier been transferred before the final day of the operation.

“After the operation, the Osun PSO and some other senior officers were transferred out of the command. Before the operation was finalised, more than 150 personnel in Osun were deployed in the northern states, including Benue, Jigawa, and Bauchi, for reasons known to the service,” he added.

According to the security source, the DSS had been tracking some of the ISWAP members since 2023 when there was intelligence that they wanted to attack a church in Ilesa.

“In 2023, there was intelligence that ISWAP wanted to attack a church in Ilesa. A signal was sent to the police, but unfortunately, it was leaked, which jeopardised our operation to arrest the suspects. We have been tracking them since then,” he stated.

He further revealed that members of ISWAP were involved in the bank robberies that occurred in Iree and Iragbiji, Boripe Local Government Area of the state in 2021.

According to the source, it is not the first time the DSS will arrest suspected ISWAP/Boko Haram members in Osun, disclosing that some suspected terrorists from Sokoto and Zamfara states were arrested in Ile-Ife in 2022.

“We arrested some in 2022 in Ile-Ife. In the course of that operation, the palace of a monarch was raided, likewise some other people in the town,” he said.

Another security source also confirmed that the DSS operatives had been tracking the suspects for months, noting that those arrested were not living in the same house.

“They were picked up in Ogbon Idio and Ifofin areas of Ilesa, in Ilesa East Local Government Area of Osun State, on December 16. They were not staying in the same house but lived close to each other. All of them are watch repairers, and they sell glasses and watches too.

“There are many Hausa residents in the neighborhood where they were picked up, but those who carried out the operation knew exactly those they were looking for, and they went straight for them.

“Even some of their kinsmen could not still believe they are suspected members of ISWAP, but those that arrested them have strong reasons to suspect them,” the source further said.

Community leaders worried

Findings by Saturday PUNCH revealed that one of the arrested suspects in Ilesa, Abubakar (aka Abu Aisha), was a wristwatch dealer at the popular roundabout in the town.

The suspects reportedly lived with Abubakar, who had been in the house for years.

A resident of Ifofin, who spoke with our correspondent on condition of anonymity, said the arrests created confusion among other northerners in the areas and some members of the mosque where they prayed.

He said, “Abubakar is a known person. He sells wristwatches at Ilesa roundabout. He was arrested alongside some of his people living with him before dawn that day. The security people came with about five vehicles in the midnight. Though I didn’t see them, I could hear the sound and movement of the vehicles and the sound of ‘move’ when they were arresting those people.

“When it was dawn and there was no information about where Abubakar and his people were taken to, some of the northerners and the Muslims in the mosque they usually prayed in started visiting one police station after another to ask for them. They even visited the army barracks at Ibodi, but there were no traces of them. The lack of information about their whereabouts created confusion for their people.”

One of our correspondents, who visited the Ifofin area where the suspects were arrested, on Wednesday, noted uneasy calm.

A group of Hausa men were gathered at the open-space mosque attached to Durojaiye House, near Ogbon Idio Junction, Ifofin.

Some of them were just returning from their daily hawking, carrying trays filled with wristwatches and other small items, while others were preparing for prayers, washing their hands and feet in solemn silence.

Saturday PUNCH met one of the Hausa community leaders, Mohammed Borni, who was seated on a prayer mat amidst his people.

Borni recounted the arrest of his kinsmen.

He said, “It happened around 1am. We were surprised when the security men came and took them away. It is about two months now, and we haven’t seen or heard from them after their arrest. Before now, we had gone to the police area command several times to look for them, but the police said they were not even aware of their arrest.”

When asked if he had suspected the arrested men to be criminals or have links to insurgent groups like ISWAP, Mohammed shook his head vehemently, [saying, “They are not like that. They sell wristwatches and MP3 players.”

Another leader, Abba Chellu, who spoke to our correspondent over the phone while on his way to Abuja, said the DSS arrested 11 people in two different operations in the areas.

“They (security operatives) were more than 30 officers that came, and they came twice. The first was on a Sunday, around 1.30am; they arrested five people and came back on Tuesday to arrest another six people.”

Living on edge

The incident has raised concerns among residents of the area who expressed fear of living with suspected terrorists.

A tailor in the area, Bimpe Olaiwola, said it was shocking to hear that the suspects were arrested over alleged links with terrorists.

She said, “We have lived with them for years peacefully, but when we heard that some were taken away as suspected terrorists, we became more cautious. Everyone is now on edge, watching their backs. I just pray the authorities help us drive out any real terrorists because some of us are truly afraid.”

Another resident, Tope Niyi, said residents had become more vigilant.

He said, “Many of them are in Ilesa, doing menial jobs and riding Okada. We can’t stop them; but we must be security-conscious. People are genuinely scared.”

Retired generals from the Army, Navy, and Air Force who were actively involved in Nigeria's fight against insurgency, especially against Boko Haram, have closely examined the situation and concluded that some non-governmental organizations (NGOs), international agencies, and certain interest groups have contributed to the ongoing terrorism and violent crimes in the country.

According to The Vanguard, it was reported that recently, the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa, called on the Federal Government to invite the United Nations to investigate how terrorists and bandits in Nigeria are still receiving arms despite the military's strong efforts.

The armed forces have successfully killed many terrorists and seized thousands of their weapons, yet these groups continue to gain access to advanced weapons.

General Musa’s request followed public criticism that the military has not justified the large amounts of money allocated to the fight against terrorism, as terrorist groups, bandits, and kidnappers still manage to obtain sophisticated arms.

Speaking on this issue, retired generals—including former theatre commanders, general officers commanding (GOCs), field commanders, and Air Force operational leaders—highlighted the main causes of the ongoing conflict and identified those supporting these violent groups. They also suggested ways to address the problem. However, these retired generals chose to remain anonymous when sharing their views.

A retired AOC who spoke to Vanguard correspondent said,

“NGOs are deeply involved in this arms inflow. They have ulterior motives here. They deceive us with mosquito nets, donate insecticides and give us some dollars to support infrastructure but make millions of dollars from arms sales, mineral resources export etc. And most of the weapons are sold very cheap to terrorists and bandits, as cheap as $5, $8, $10."

Further talking, he said at one point in the fight against banditry, especially in Kaduna State, security agencies discovered that 450 Boko Haram terrorists had moved from the North-East into the Birnin Gwari forests. However, the government lacked the political will to take necessary action against them, such as launching air strikes or using other methods to eliminate them.

He said although the military and security forces are making every possible effort to end banditry and terrorism, but terrorists continue to receive supplies through certain agencies and NGOs that serve as cover for their operations.

nedu666:
You posted the topic yet could not read the topic you posted. When we say you are dull and a slowpoke, you will start accusing us of insulting you

The group argued that the beach is Eket Beach, located behind ExxonMobil Qua Iboe Terminal in Eket Local Government Area of the state, adding that some corrupt officials of government had chosen to call it Ibeno Beach.

Ojiofor:
Yo

Why attack the businessman [/b]when the problem is between two groups claiming ownership of the land?[/b]
I am sure he does not ask for your pity.Please pity yourself that is struggling to buy a cup of rice.