… sends SOS To Host Communities To safeguard facilities
Apparently disturbed by the raising cases of vandalism of Railway facilities in Abia, Ebonyi and Enugu States, the Railway District Manager (East) Mohammed M. Ibrahim, has urged the host communities to protect the equipment as their own property.
Ibrahim who stated this while speaking to newsmen in Enugu on Tuesday, identified the hot spots to include, Umugo in Abia State, Ishiagu in Ebonyi State, Ubahu and Udumachara in Enugu State.
According to the District Manager, the most worrisome and heartbreaking one is the unfortunate reports of vandalism of the newly constructed Aba to Port-Harcourt Railway track, particularly at Umugo in Abia State.
He stated that on July 3, this year, 200 pieces of nuts and clips were reported to have been removed by these vandals while on July 15, this year too, 90 pieces of nuts and clips were equally reported to have been removed.
The Eastern Railway boss noted that all these incidents took place within Umugo Section of our track.
He added, “This wickedness is capable of causing accident of unimaginable proportion if not checked”, wondering why any human being with his or her right senses will think about frustrating this project that has brought so much relieve to the good people of the Eastern District.
While thanking the Abia State Government for her continued support, he asked for more support and equally asked other States to also assist the Corporation in putting an end to this wicked act of sabotage by empowering security agencies to be on the lookout for trucks or any vehicle carrying Railway materials.
Speaking further on the hot spots, Mr. Mohammed said that virtually on daily basis, Railway track materials are being carted away by hoodlums at Ubahu and Ihamufu Sections, as well as Udumachara, all in Enugu State.
He also noted that Ishiagu in Ebonyi State is witnessing high rate of vandalism of Railway track materials.
“I also had a report of sets of missing fasteners along the railway line from
DK19+750-DK20+300 (Around Elelenwa, Rivers State)
“To ensure the operation of the raiwlay line, the Contractor has promptly completed the supplementary installation of the fasteners. Additionally, on July 25th, the Contractor caught a thief stealing fasteners along the line and handed him over to Mr. Richard, the NRC Chief Police Officer at Port-Harcourt Station, on the same day. However, the very serious issue is that since the operation began on April 30, 2024, there has been a significant number of fasteners stolen along the line, with rampant theft by local residents. At the current rate of the theft, the spare fasteners will soon be depleted.”
He called on all traditional rulers and Presidents-General of the communities mentioned to remember that a functional railway system is always a boost to development.
Mohammed reminded the community leaders that security is everybody’s business and so, they are expected to redouble efforts towards tracking the perpetrators of this act of irresponsibility.
His words: “We have been pleading with the government to restore train operations here, now the trains have resumed, some enemies of progress are vandalizing the track without considering the grave consequences that will have on the commuting public”
