By ADEMOLA BABALOLA, CHARLES ABAH and JIDE BABALOLA
Published: Sunday, 19 Apr 2009

President Umaru Musa Yar‘Adua‘s insistence on fiscal federalism and alleged contract inflation may have spelt the doom for Nigeria‘s $8.5billion (N1.2trillion) rail modernisation project agreement with the Chinese, investigations by SUNDAY PUNCH have revealed.
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Making a goldmine out of rail system

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo‘s administration in 2006 signed the contract agreement with the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation to construct double railway tracks for the country as part of the desire to revive the country‘s dead rail transportation system, but there were fears on Friday that the project was sinking as no identifiable progress has been recorded in spite of initial $250million already committed by the government.

The Obasanjo‘s contract deal was the second high profile rail development agreement signed between the Federal Government and the same Chinese firm.

The late Head of State, General Sani Abacha, signed a similar $500 million contract in 1996.

But officials of the Ministry of Transportation told one of our correspondents in Abuja on Friday that the Obasanjo administration had projected that the $8.5billion project would be financed with proceeds from excess crude oil, but that Yar‘Adua‘s insistence on sharing the fund among the federating states had made this impossible.

According to sources, President Yar‘Adua was said to have decided to tread cautiously on implementing the project because of alleged complaints that the total cost of the contract was inflated.

”Mr. President insists on fiscal federalism, and because the previous administration projected that the contract would be financed with proceeds from the Excess Crude Income Account, the decision to give states their constitutional share of the fund had serious implications for the railway modernisation project”, Mr Biodun Oladunjoye, Transport Minister‘s spokesman told SUNDAY PUNCH in Abuja on Friday.

A senior official of the ministry who asked for anonymity confided in our correspondent that speculations that the project cost was inflated had also made the project suffer lack of interest from the government.

”Had it been that all these unnecessary speculations did not come up, what we should be doing now is to lay the tracks. We, Nigerians are killing the project with speculations; some people talk about bloated costs by making judgments as if we are doing a single track system instead of the double that we are going to construct. They just unreasonably say that the project is loaded and the speculations almost destroyed the project,” the angry official said.

Though officials of the ministry assured that the project was still on course, our correspondents gathered that the $250million initial payment made by the Obasanjo‘s administration may have been lost because no concrete steps, beyond designing work by the CCECC, were taken to consolidate the agreement since its signing in 2006.

The CCECC, SUNDAY PUNCH gathered, has completed all the preliminary work, including the aerial surveys, and designs, said to cost more than eight per cent of the total contract sum, as well as the geo-technical arrangements for bridges and the alignment work.

Meanwhile, stakeholders have called for the stripping of the Federal Government of her monopoly in the rail sector as well as overhauling of the transportation system.

Dr Kayode Bawa-Allah, acting dean of the School of Transport at the Lagos State University, in an interview with one of our correspondents called for the amendment of the Nigeria Railway Act of 1955 which vested power to run rail transportation on the Federal Government.

”Why will only the Federal Government be responsible for the nation‘s rail system? We need to actively involve the private sector, hence the call for the concession of the railway. You can see that the same magic wand is happening in the unbundling of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria and the Nigerian Telecommunications Limited”, Bawa-Allah noted.

Secretary-General of the Nigerian Union of Railway Workers, Mr Martin Adeyanju, lamented that past governments in the country were only interested in redrawing the paper works.

Adeyanju specifically blamed the Sani Abacha‘s regime for bringing the Chinese who, he alleged, damaged the country‘s rail tracks.

He added that nothing concrete was also achieved in the first six years of Obasanjo‘s administration.

At the height of its glory, the NRC which operates a network of 3,505 kilometers (2,178 mi) of single track lines across the country, had over 45,000 workers in its employ, but its fortunes started nose-diving in the late 1970s.

The NRC today has fewer than 6,000 employees.

Information on the NRC site on Saturday indicated that the corporation in the last 20 years had gone into bankruptcy more than once.

In one fell swoop in 2005, the NRC sacked almost half of its 12,000 workforce.

The comatose state of the rail system in the country, many have argued, forms a major factor for the deplorable state of inter-state roads as bulk goods which ordinarily should be transported through the rail are being taken through the roads.

The CCECC was established in 1979 with approval by the state council of China.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners last week in Lagos asked the Federal Government to order full scale inquiry into the Nigerian-Chinese rail contracts in the country, which it said had not made meaningful impact on the lives of the cititzenry.

National Operations Coordinator, NARTO, Alhaji Lawal Isa, at a media briefing, also called on the President of Senate, Senator David Mark, to initiate measures to compel the Senate Committee on Transportation to unravel those allegedly sabotaging government‘s efforts at resuscitating the ailing rail system.

Similarly, the Publish-What-You-Pay, a coalition of pro-transparency civil society groups in Abuja on Friday called on the National Assembly, the Nigeria Labour Congress, the Nigeria Bar Association and other stakeholders to urgently probe the billion dollars rail contracts with a view to unravelling alleged corruption in the deal.

”The $8.3 billion railway modernisation project has stagnated; $250 million of tax-payers‘ money may have gone down the drain while hope of mass transit by rail remains a mere dream. Since the Minister of Transport, Alhaji Ibrahim Bio, had been quoted as saying that Chief Olusegun Obasanjo signed a Memorandum of Understanding that makes it very difficult to abandon the contractual agreement without serious legal implications, the Yar‘Adua administration may likely know more than what is being said”, the groups Communication Officer, Mr Adedeji Moses, told SUNDAY PUNCH.

This project is a white elephant anyway.

This is the sort of things you get in a nation that lacks proper planning. And by the way, what has China got to offer in terms of rail engineering?

www...com

@SBO

What do you know? You and many more Nigerians like yourself are those killing the country - do you know the meaning of a white elephant project? So you are saying once completed, it will never be put to use? That is the meaning of a white elephant project, you read the piece of information above and as usual you make a statement that is so meaningless, crude and holds no water - I pity what your brain is made of. Do you have more insight into the project, no!

I_Laugh. I put this to you: Do you or Do you not see a problem here?

I_Laugh

Is filled with Venom today . Welcome back you have been missed. The best discussion one can have is termed " Balanced"

i_laugh:

@SBO

What do you know? You and many more Nigerians like yourself are those killing the country - do you know the meaning of a white elephant project? So you are saying once completed, it will never be put to use? That is the meaning of a white elephant project, you read the piece of information above and as usual you make a statement that is so meaningless, crude and holds no water - I pity what your brain is made of. Do you have more insight into the project, no!

@i_laugh

This is one of the problems in Nigeria. You can have simple constructuve discussion without being 'aggressive and abusive'.

Yes it will be used, but the question is by how many people? If CECCC or the FG can come out and tell me how many people are expected to use the rail line based on their feasibility then, I guess we can start talking. If this is the way infratstructure is planned all over the world, without any justification, then the whole world will be relying on IMF loan.

Unfortunately, when you query the rationale behind some govt projects, people seems to raise their hands up in arms. I understand that every Nigerian just wants things to be done, but at the same time we cannot allow taxpayers money to spent on grandiose projects that offer little or no economic value. Just because it is a rail line does not make it a 'good' project. Infrastructure planning requires more thinking than we currently do in Nigeria.

www...com

sbo:

@i_laugh

This is one of the problems in Nigeria. You can have simple constructuve discussion without being 'aggressive and abusive'.

Yes it will be used, but the question is by how many people? If CECCC or the FG can come out and tell me how many people are expected to use the rail line based on their feasibility then, I guess we can start talking. If this is the way infratstructure is planned all over the world, without any justification, then the whole world will be relying on IMF loan.

Unfortunately, when you query the rationale behind some govt projects, people seems to raise their hands up in arms. I understand that every Nigerian just wants things to be done, but at the same time we cannot allow taxpayers money to spent on grandiose projects that offer little or no economic value. Just because it is a rail line does not make it a 'good' project. Infrastructure planning requires more thinking than we currently do in Nigeria.

www...com

Your thinking makes me sick - you said how many people will use it? So because of that, infrastructures should not be put in place? What is the population of other developed countries where this type of project is done? Do you realy mean what you just said? that who will use it? I am amazed at your thinking line.

i_laugh:

Your thinking makes me sick - you said how many people will use it? So because of that, infrastructures should not be put in place? What is the population of other developed countries where this type of project is done? Do you realy mean what you just said? that who will use it? I am amazed at your thinking line.

My friend, decisions on infratsructure development are not made just on perception - even in the so-called rich nations. I'm speaking from a professional point any not an emotive one. Are you telling me that there are more people travelling between Lagos-Kano than people commuting daily along the Lagos-Ibadan corridor.

If the govt can tell me the patronage between Lagos-Kano is greater than Lagos-Ibadan corridor, then I will keep my mouth shut.

My position is, let us develop sub-regional rail lines before talking about high-speed long distance railway. It is one step at a time!

i_laugh:

Your thinking makes me sick - you said how many people will use it? So because of that, infrastructures should not be put in place? What is the population of other developed countries where this type of project is done? Do you realy mean what you just said? that who will use it? I am amazed at your thinking line.

I_Laugh, I will like to think you are a logical person. What he is saying is that, it is perhaps no feasible to have such project since it will probably make little or no difference due to existence of other forms of travel.

Yes even it was built, it would be used but it still do not mean it is of economic value. Do not forget that this is a loan and needs to be paid back. You need to factor into consideration the lack of "maintenance culture" [one of the main reason our power sector died] and a few other things. Is there any other plan/funds for the maintenance, security and running of the rail system?

You see, building something like that need a whole lot of planning, it is just that people are not convinced about the plans been made in my opinion.

sbo:

My friend, decisions on infratsructure development are not made just on perception - even in the so-called rich nations. I'm speaking from a professional point any not an emotive one. Are you telling me that there are more people travelling between Lagos-Kano than people commuting daily along the Lagos-Ibadan corridor.

If the govt can tell me the patronage between Lagos-Kano is greater than Lagos-Ibadan corridor, then I will keep my mouth shut.

My position is, let us develop sub-regional rail lines before talking about high-speed long distance railway. It is one step at a time!

I am thinking you are either the son of Chanchangi, Ekene Dili Chukwu, Chisco or one of this private transport companies who had made and are still making huge sums of money from land transportation and does not want the rail system developed because of that. You are a professional? Well, where are you plying your professional trade? Not in Nigeria definitely.

@ElRazur
That is exactly my point.

@i_Laugh
I neither a son or employee of NARTO. I'm also not against development of railway in Nigeria.In fact I'm a strong advocate of the rail development in Nigeria, which I believe in a comatose. And of the reason for the failure of the rail system is the 'monopoly' status of the 'incompetent and inept' Nigeria Railway Corporation. The govt is currently trying to correct this problem through the ongoing review of the Railway Act. But unfortunately, apart from introduction of private operator through concessioning, this proposed Bill does not go far enough to address some of the inherent conflict of interest that exist in the railway sector. For example how can NRC be a service provider, responsible for granting concession, and rail regulator. If you read my blog you will see some of the things I'm talking about.

Also, I don't think I need to be plying my trade in Nigeria to know what is right.

@SBO & i_Laugh
Justify your line of arguments and stop attacking each other word for word.
Personally,
I think the project if embarked on and fully executed will bring a huge revolution to the transport sector of the country,It will open up the hinterlands and Network Trade and Commerce in the cheapest means possible.
But, My fear is that major Players in the Land Transport Business will not allow the project to see the light of the day because of their gluttonic tendencies and fears that it will drive them out of business.

How much do you know of the particulars of the Project? @IFELEKE. I really suggest you take a closer look at the deal. We are in over our heads and if we back out, we pay about a billion or so in consequence. Given that we are talking of Nigeria here, to date, we still do not know the details of the plan, just what we are served on occassion by the press, which does not sound good.

Kobojunkie:

How much do you know of the particulars of the Project? @IFELEKE. I really suggest you take a closer look at the deal. We are in over our heads and if we back out, we pay about a billion or so in consequence. Given that we are talking of Nigeria here, to date, we still do not know the details of the plan, just what we are served on occassion by the press, which does not sound good.

Kobojunkie,
I wasn't talking about backing out, I was just talking on how beneficial it would be if ''some people'' will allow it see the light of the day.
You are right, I personally will have to take a closer look at the deal considering the fact that our government hoard essenntial information from us down here In Nigeria.
But Must We Continue Like This?

IFELEKE:

Kobojunkie,
I wasn't talking about backing out, I was just talking on how beneficial it would be if ''some people'' will allow it see the light of the day.

Hmm. . . How can we clearly speak of the benefit of THIS particular rail project without considering the actual cost of it? Would an outrageously priced project really benefit us if in the end we are unable to effectively maintain it?

IFELEKE:

You are right, I personally will have to take a closer look at the deal considering the fact that our government hoard essenntial information from us down here In Nigeria.
But Must We Continue Like This?

Yes, they do hoard essential information from us, and that is why I would we carefully weigh the so-called benefits against the cost. This contract was signed between Nigeria and China, I believe back in 2005, this is, I hope, after years of planning work which should have gone into looking into ensuring that this plan works best for us. Note that this was long before the oil windfalls of last year or more. I did not know the particulars of the deal back then, and to be honest, what I have read through the Nigerian media on it does not seem palatable. I am all for rail system and will gladly invest as I believe that country needs a rail system like yesterday. Only that I am moved to, more and more these days, believe this particular plan is likely another white elephant project.
I am not saying the government should back away from it at this point but if there is any way to modify the terms of the contract, so that we can actually gain a lot more, in some way and there is still time, I say we go for it. Now this is not excusing Yar adua administration in any way for its ineptitude.

Kobojunkie:

Hmm. . . How can we clearly speak of the benefit of THIS particular rail project without considering the actual cost of it?

Brother, Tell me what is not overpriced in this country.
As Far as this government is concerned, what we should be bothered about is full completion and adequate implementation of initiated projects(over bloated or not) afterall,Overbloating project fees and fully implementing them is better than embezzling without doing anything at all. . .So To Speak.

But you ve said it all

Kobojunkie:

Would an outrageously priced project really benefit us if in the end we are unable to effectively maintain it?

The Abuja National Stadium is a classic example of your quote above,The Project was overbloated but completed.
I went there in 2003 and was Proud that such a masterpiece was in my country but now,the stadium is a shadow of it's former self no thanks to lack of proper maintenance and management.

Kobojunkie:

Yes, they do hoard essential information from us, and that is why I would we carefully weigh the so-called benefits against the cost. This contract was signed between Nigeria and China, I believe back in 2005, this is, I hope, after years of planning work which should have gone into looking into ensuring that this plan works best for us. Note that this was long before the oil windfalls of last year or more. I did not know the particulars of the deal back then, and to be honest, what I have read through the Nigerian media on it does not seem palatable. I am all for rail system and will gladly invest as I believe that country needs a rail system like yesterday. Only that I am moved to, more and more these days, believe this particular plan is likely another white elephant project.
I am not saying the government should back away from it at this point but if there is any way to modify the terms of the contract, so that we can actually gain a lot more, in some way and there is still time, I say we go for it. Now this is not excusing Yar adua administration in any way for its ineptitude.

The contract was signed by people whose paramount interest was lining their pockets with some goodies notwithstanding the lapses in it.
We all know the benefits of Rail Transportation and what it will do to our economy but my fear is your modification option.
Modification(to our present government)might mean outright cancellation of the contract(thereby forgoing the initial down payment) and awarding a fresh overbloated contract which won't be completed again.
So, what do you think?

IFELEKE:

Brother, Tell me what is not overpriced in this country.
As Far as this government is concerned, what we should be bothered about is full completion and adequate implementation of initiated projects(over bloated or not) afterall,Overbloating project fees and fully implementing them is better than embezzling without doing anything at all. . .So To Speak.

But you ve said it allThe Abuja National Stadium is a classic example of your quote above,The Project was overbloated but completed.
I went there in 2003 and was Proud that such a masterpiece was in my country but now,the stadium is a shadow of it's former self no thanks to lack of proper maintenance and management.
The contract was signed by people whose paramount interest was lining their pockets with some goodies notwithstanding the lapses in it.
We all know the benefits of  Rail Transportation and what it will do to our economy but my fear  is your modification option.
Modification(to our present government)might mean outright cancellation of the contract(thereby forgoing the initial down payment) and awarding a fresh overbloated contract which won't be completed again.
So, what do you think?

Lopsided thinking. Always criticising without putting forward any alternative approach.

IFELEKE:

Brother, Tell me what is not overpriced in this country.
As Far as this government is concerned, what we should be bothered about is full completion and adequate implementation of initiated projects(over bloated or not) afterall,Overbloating project fees and fully implementing them is better than embezzling without doing anything at all. . .So To Speak.
But you ve said it allThe Abuja National Stadium is a classic example of your quote above,The Project was overbloated but completed.
I went there in 2003 and was Proud that such a masterpiece was in my country but now,the stadium is a shadow of it's former self no thanks to lack of proper maintenance and management.

Glad that you present an example yourself. So, knowing that the project was overpriced and in the end we could not even afford to maintain it, why do you believe we ought to continue with yet another overpriced project that we might, in the end, be unable to afford its maintenance?

IFELEKE:

The contract was signed by people whose paramount interest was lining their pockets with some goodies notwithstanding the lapses in it.
We all know the benefits of Rail Transportation and what it will do to our economy but my fear is your modification option.

We all know the benefits of rail for sure but what benefit will rail that we may not be able to maintain be for us? If at the end of the day it goes the way most other overpriced projects have gone, what benefits do we reap then?

IFELEKE:

Modification(to our present government)might mean outright cancellation of the contract(thereby forgoing the initial down payment) and awarding a fresh overbloated contract which won't be completed again.
So, what do you think?

To be honest, I am not for cancellation at this point considering the cost of such to us. I do know that the current project cost seems too outrageous considering we only get about  a couple hundred kilometers of rail out of it. I would rather we redesign and re-plan; find ways to get more for our money so we can spend less on other new rail constructions and more on actually maintaining these things. Rail needs serious maintenance; Most of the systems here are heavily maintained. If we want the same technology in Nigeria as we have in places like china or other developed worlds, we need to be ready for the maintenance as well. What good is it buying an expensive suit you cannot maintain?

This seems to be one of the major problems with infrastructure in the country. Another I notice is that We spend outrageous amounts on road construction and what not, worse is we make use of low quality tools and materials in these constructions, making maintenance really hard. Hard in the sense that maintain in most cases require total reconstruction e.g. of roads.

tosh_acer:

Lopsided thinking. Always criticising without putting forward any alternative approach.

You spotted the dude shooting himself on the foot.

. . . . blah blah blah, unprofitable white elephant projects are good so far they are completed and at the same time, the Abuja statium was bad due to the fact that it was completed and nothing to use it for.

Na wah for naija people sha.

agressive and illegal and useless and waste of money

what more

talk, talk talk

if we back out, look their yeye mouth

morons

tosh_acer:

Lopsided thinking. Always criticising without putting forward any alternative approach.

.
Read the first paragraph of what you quoted and fully digest it before you hit the reply button next time.

nuzo:

You spotted the dude shooting himself on the foot.

. . . . blah blah blah, unprofitable white elephant projects are good so far they are completed and at the same time, the Abuja statium was bad due to the fact that it was completed and nothing to use it for.

Na wah for naija people sha.

Completed not properly maintained.
Interprete my post properly and Don't quote me off context.

Kobojunkie:

To be honest, I am not for cancellation at this point considering the cost of such to us. I do know that the current project cost seems too outrageous considering we only get about a couple hundred kilometers of rail out of it. I would rather we redesign and re-plan; find ways to get more for our money so we can spend less on other new rail constructions and more on actually maintaining these things. Rail needs serious maintenance; Most of the systems here are heavily maintained. If we want the same technology in Nigeria as we have in places like china or other developed worlds, we need to be ready for the maintenance as well. What good is it buying an expensive suit you cannot maintain?

I wonder oo. . .
I am not for cancellation too,I am for continuation because We all know the Implication of an outright cancellation(we will forgo the down payment)
Your idea of redesigning and replaning is marvellous but do you think our present crop of leaders will tow that line?

Rail system in Nigeria is good and will benefit everyone. But the point is that projects are executed in Nigeria based on tribal interests without considering facts on the ground. That rail should have been Lagos-Benin-Onitsha-Enugu-Abakaliki rail Not lagos kano because those roads are the busiest in west Africa. The people commuting back and forth to Lagos from these places could have easily financed this project, reduce armrobbery and road congestion, increase business efficiency and open up places. Now, somebody will say i only want this to benefit the south but it is not true. iT IS BASEDON WHAT MAKES sense. The amount of people travelling from LAgos to Kano is less than 1/3 the amount of people that tavel and do business betweem Abakaliki-Enugu-onitsha -LAgos on a daily basis. This should have been put into consideration before embarking on such a gianomous project. My fear is that if this one fails(hopefully it never will), it will affect the people that actually need this rail. We should embark on projects that makes sense economically and that will produce tangible results without infusing regional politics in it.
They are constructing and budgetting this rail line, but the Niger Brigde is on the verge of collapse and nothing has been done to build a new modern one which will cost less than 1/10 what this rail system will cost. Mind you, Niger bridge is one of the busiest BridgeS in Africa, so you be the judge. If NIGer Bridge WAS contructed and a toll is collected in that bridge, i guarantee you that this will be a better investment for the federal government thaN the Expensive stadium that was bult in Abuja which we seldom use but costed more than building a new bridge. I am not against the Stadium because i like it and it makeS Nigeria looK better, but before we use huge amounts on federal resources, we should think of projects that yield dividends to the people in the long run.

For me, it will not make economic sense if we pull out at this stage. However, knowing the Govt in power, Im not sure they care about that. If they were sincere in the real reason why they are keeping this thing on hold, Il not be worried, but Im 100% sure its not because of the 'illegalities' involved in the initial set up.

Way forward - if govt is really sincere, we are committed to the project already. And I think I read when this project was signed by the Obj regime that the first step is the lagos - kano line before we now have extensions to abuja, ibadan, etc. To me this really makes sense. I want to believe that the line from lagos to kano will have stations and stops in between. It won't make any economic sense if we have just a line linking lagos and ibadan (for example). Its just too short a distance. Its the same reason the big luxury buses we have don't run such short distances even though they travel through these states. Infact, ABC stops and picks passengers at Ibadan on her Lagos - Abuja route but does not have a lagos-ibadan route (I hope Im right).

Next step in this project is for govt to work a way out for the private transport coys already in existence in Nigeria. By these I mean coys like ABC, ekenedichukwu, etc. Because whether we like it or not, bringing in the rail will almost destroy their businesses and thousands employed by them will lose their jobs. Thus, my proposal is that the fg gives the coys opportunity to come together as one coy and be the first private rail coy when the line is finished. So all the fg needs to do is build and maintain the lines. The new mega rail coy will run the service. If the fg like, they can license additional rail coys. Il recommend licensing 1 or 2 additional ones to give room for competition and stabilise prices.

If the above can be done, I think it will help the nation and the people.

Rail Project in Nigeria? Shouldn't they be focusing on other important things like Health care, employment, security, water, electricity. Heck since we're discussing transport. Public transport in the states. Gosh, these ppl don't know what they are doing.

Badriyyah:

Rail Project in Nigeria? Shouldn't they be focusing on other important things like Health care, employment, security, water, electricity. Heck since we're discussing transport. Public transport in the states. Gosh, these ppl don't know what they are doing.

Another childish contribution. So, government should neglect transportation or what are you talking about??

Here is an example of a railway project slated to start function sometime next year. Compare the cost of this project to what we have with this plan with China and you might notice that the cost difference.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200902260179.html

In light of the events of the past year, with the fall in price of materials, I am seriously for modifications of some sort to help save us some money or maybe provide us with better product in the end.

@Kobo

You will be surprised that the cot of their project is much more than the one we are actually talking about.

It is wrong to blankently compare costs without taking so many other things into consideration - topography is an example.

tosh_acer:

@Kobo

You will be surprised that the cot of their project is much more than the one we are actually talking about.

It is wrong to blankently compare costs without taking so many other things into consideration - topography is an example.

Proof?? If none, then may I suggest we stick to critiquing this based on the much we know so far, not more assumed facts. If you note, I have made it clear that there is limited information available and based on that, I lay my reasons for why I would call for modification if it is not too late.

The current administration has put this on hold for 2 years now. Basically, the initial plan was signed back 4 years ago, a lot has changed since then and that includes fall in price of materials, realization that we need to care more for our environment etc. If we have yet to commence, I am suggesting, if we can, we go over this again to see where we can gain more with what we know now.

@ kobo

everything in niger is over sliced to heaven . but like for Iike what system are they constructing in Burundi compare to ours ,length , width ,  Almighty availability of constant power supply  all these factors and other issues are taking into concern when evaluating these contracts . although i don't doubt back hander fees inclusive.

ode remo:

@ kobo

everything in niger is over sliced to heaven . but like for Iike what system are they constructing in Burundi compare to ours ,length , width ,  Almighty availability of constant power supply  all these factors and other issues are taking into concern when evaluating these contracts . although i don't doubt back hander fees inclusive.

Another beef of mine with it is this, this contract was signed under Obasanjo. Knowing what I know now of the level of squander that went on during his administration and the fact that after 8 years, we do not have much to work with, I still think the deal needs to be reviewed and if be found necessary that we forego it, with good reason, I am for it. Unfortunately, the person to handle the reviewing would be the current administration for which I have little faith.

tosh_acer:

Another childish contribution. So, government should neglect transportation or what are you talking about??

SMH, Is this the most important thing Nigeria needs? Do you know what it takes to maintain railways? These same ppl can't even handle PUBLIC transportation, water, electricity and they are moving straight to railway. The country needs to take one step at a time to grow, not rushing into expensive projects like this.

the project is illegal and should be cancealed!! simple as that!!

fixed our roads just like fashola is doing to reduce death

if u know how many that died in our fg roads like onitsha-lagos, enugu - north, then u will know whats up

Just like anyother countries, safety of its citizen should be provided to ease and secures their lives

the thing is these morons talk like they know but they know nothing, such an illegal project!!

do u know in line with IMF standard, before u can qualifed for fundin, first the project must be fairly bided by all parties, u cant just wake up push the project to some 419 chinese just like u morons did

that project should have come when all our main and the busiet  road network is done to utimate standard and documnet on that too

argue here day and nite on illegal project is pure nonesense, they should pull out now cuz nigeria has lose more money through other means, one of them oil theif so hmmmm the earlier the better

nigeria is not about lagos-kano u know, this is nigeria we are talking about

yet the want one neigeria and they do otherwise

yeye poeple