The Transportation Minister, Rotimi Amaechi and his Ghanaian colleague Hon. Kwaku Ofori Asiamah would be touring the Lagos-Ibadan speed train site on Friday.
Hon. Kwaku Ofori Asiamah
It would be Asiamah’s first visit to with his Nigerian colleague, since the $1.7 billion project began in June, 2017. The 156 kilometre long construction is being handled by the Chinese multinational Corporation – China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC).
The two Ministers would also be joined on the tour by the Senate Committee on Land Transport, led by its chairman Senator Gbenga Ashafa, top management of the Federal Ministry of Transportation, and top government officials from Lagos, Ogun and Oyo States, as well as the members of the technical implementation committee, led by the Managing Director of the Nigerian Railway Corporation Mr Fidet Okhiria and Team Consultants – the project supervising consultants.
It would be Amaechi’s second visit this month, having earlier visited on March 8th, when he issued a marching order to CCECC to get the rail tracks laid to kilometre 120, some 36 kilometres to the heart of Ibadan.
During the visit, Amaechi had expressed the intention to ride with President Muhammadu Buhari on the speed rail before his inauguration on May 29.
He said the project has been slated as part of the inauguration for the President’s second term by the committee saddled to handle the ceremony.
Amaechi had ensured personal monitoring of the project since it was flagged off by the Vice president Prof Yemi Osinbajo, in June 2017, as the nation’s Acting President.
Last month, the Minister, accompanied by the Ogun State Governor Senator Ibikunle Amosun, the Alake of Egbaland Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, the Nobel Laureate Prof Wole Soyinka, and other prominent Ogun sons, had flagged the train’s ride from Lagos to Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.
He had announced a three months free train ride at the event, which had to be suspended to enable the contractor speed up the construction and deliver on the contract.
During the March 8 tour, Amaechi had apologized to Nigerians for the stoppage, which according to him had to do with the need to deliver the project according to schedule.
He expressed the commitment of the government to inaugurate the project by May 29, even though the completion of the train stations slated to be along the route may take a while longer.
Ten train stations, with three mega stations are being penciled down for the Lagos-Ibadan rail line.
