The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has dismissed reports suggesting that the Lagos-Ibadan Standard Gauge Railway has been vandalised and rendered unsafe.
In a statement issued on Saturday in Lagos, NRC’s Managing Director, Dr Kayode Opeifa, clarified that the claims were inaccurate. The statement, signed by Chief Public Relations Officer Mr Callistus Unyimadu, noted that the management had reviewed a report circulating online, which alleged that vandals had targeted the $1.5 billion Lagos-Ibadan rail project.
“The article claimed major components of the railway, inaugurated by former President Muhammadu Buhari in 2021, had been stolen. However, this is misleading,” Opeifa said.
He explained that the video referenced in the report was outdated and did not depict the Lagos-Ibadan Standard Gauge corridor. Instead, the incidents occurred in August 2024 along the old narrow gauge line between Kilometres 170 and 240, specifically between Omi-Adio and Erunmu in Oyo State.
According to internal NRC reports dated August 7, 2024, the vandalism involved sections of the narrow gauge track laid on concrete sleepers. Specific cases included the theft of 250 E-clips at Kilometre 218, and 16 short rails at Kilometre 221 in Erunmu.
In a related incident from 2004, another 280 E-clips and two poles were stolen from Kilometre 219, also in Erunmu. Following these cases, the NRC launched immediate countermeasures, including meetings with the Erunmu village head, local vigilantes, and police authorities. The Corporation also conducted sensitisation campaigns targeting scrap metal dealers, warning against purchasing stolen rail components.
Several suspects were arrested and handed over to the Railway Police Command in Lagos for further investigation and prosecution.
Dr Opeifa confirmed that no new vandalism incidents had occurred along that axis since those interventions. He issued a stern warning to potential vandals, stating they would face severe consequences if caught.
“The NRC remains committed to safeguarding the country’s railway infrastructure. We urge the public to treat railway components as critical national assets and to report suspicious activity,” he said.