The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has decried the vandalism of its facilities, urging state governments to take ownership of the rail tracks within their states.

NRC’s managing director, Kayode Opeifa, made the call in Lagos on Friday at the parade of two suspects allegedly linked with the vandalism of train tracks, of which over 300 bolts and clips were removed.

The suspects were arrested by the railway police command in connection with the removal of fishplates along the Warri–Itakpe rail corridor.

“To address the issue of vandalism on that route, we are going to renew our discussion with the Delta State government and increase local involvement.

“There are so many communities around that area; we ended up talking with two out of five, and so we will increase the number that we will be involved in. We are going to definitely change strategies, and this will help us,” he said.

He disclosed that one of the suspects, who claimed to be a farmer, was from the community.

Mr. Opeifa said that due to security issues in the area, the corporation had to shut its train station in June.

“We are already in discussion with the Rural Electrification Agency to ensure solar lights 500 meters around and after the stations to illuminate the areas, and everything boils down to funding,” he said.

He said the issue of vandalism was on the decline, adding that they were making an issue out of each incident to discourage others from following suit.

“What worries us is people calling these assets scrap. They are not scrap; they are critical national assets,” he said.

Mr Opeifa called on the state government to support the federal government by ensuring accessible roads to train terminals in their states.

Also, the commissioner of police, Railway Command Headquarters, Vungmoh Kwaimo, said that railway transport is crucial for the social and economic activities in the country, describing vandalism as pure sabotage.

“Today, we are here to parade some suspects who were arrested in the process of vandalism of railway lines, which took place on November 4.

“The suspects, one aged 27 from Kano State and the other aged 39 from Delta State, we can also see that this is an organised crime,” he said.

Mr Kwaimo said he would ensure a thorough investigation to ensure that those involved were brought to book.

He added that the investigation had been extended to those who purchased the scraps both in Lagos and Agbor.

The president general of the Nigerian Union of Railway Workers, Innocent Ajiji, appreciated the NRC’s managing director’s efforts.

(NAN)