Kaduna-Abuja train

By Abubakar Suleiman

Before our very eyes, the Abuja–Kaduna train service is slowly dying. Its final demise is only a matter of when, not how.

If nothing drastic is done, the Rigasa, Kubwa and Idu stations may become comatose in a not-too-distant future, just as the Jere, Rijana, and Kakau stations have been left to weeds, rodents and reptiles. 

Forget the rapid infrastructural development of the Kaduna–Kano rail line; without the leadership and management required to sustain it, it risks following the same trajectory as the Abuja–Kaduna train services.

This is not pessimism. It is a warning about what happens when infrastructure is built without the strong leadership, top-notch maintenance culture and institutional commitment needed to keep it functional.

The number of daily train trips between Abuja and Kaduna shrank from four in each direction to just one.

The waiting area is gradually becoming shabby. When you lift your head to look at the roof or walls, cobwebs stare back, reminding you that Nigeria is a slaughterhouse where maintenance meets its dead end.

Let’s not even talk about buying a ticket. That’s a hassle. You just can’t get one in peace. For your sanity, you need a third party to get it for you.

The barcode scanners meant to grant access to the place housing the train and rail tracks can sometimes just choose not to work. Power supply issues? I don’t know. Functionality issues? I still don’t know. You’re left with a manual screening method that generates traffic.

Simple things like this, which ought to be fixed with urgency, only become paramount when a security breach leads to something unimaginable. But then, this is not even unimaginable.

The escalator and elevator can be idle, leaving you with the must-exercise of using the staircase. 

Mid-trip, the AC could just stop working, leaving the coaches stuffy. It has happened to me countless times. Pray you’re not unfortunate enough to have someone quietly fart, leaving the space momentarily filled with a rotten-egg-like fume. 

To fart is human, but to do so in a fully packed coach is not only inconsiderate and irresponsible; it is ungodly.

The lavatory in the train is another eyesore. Even prisoners deserve better; talk more of dignified people who are not convicts. Some of them have no water. You need to walk into another coach to ease yourself. Some charging ports aren’t working.

Should we not talk about the inconsiderate noise makers?

You’ll find yourself on a train in another country and wonder whether it’s a national mourning day because people are so mindful not to be a nuisance to the next person. No noise. Silence rules the sojourn. They’re not dumb; they are simply being civil and considerate.

Try the Abuja–Kaduna train. It can be so disgusting. From the person at the top of his voice making phone calls with no moral scruples, to acquaintances or friends who bump into each other and then start a noise like an unsolicited ‘radio station,’ to the one who turns on music on his phone without using earphones or AirPods.

I don’t know whether our loudness is meant to prove a point. Sometimes, we carry this particularly bad behaviour into another country without reading the room. I digress.

What about some unruly guys who jump onto the moving train to help passengers carry their luggage? They sometimes drag the right of way with passengers along the walkway as the train tends towards a halt. Moving luggage can be done with decorum and in peace. But it seems we thrive in chaos.

I know the aviation sector has a dedicated Ministry of Aviation. It is much more regulated worldwide than the railway industry, so it is more important to remove it from the Ministry of Transportation.

However, in other countries, railway transportation falls outside the Ministry of Transportation’s purview. They have a dedicated Ministry of Railways. I had wanted to suggest the same for Nigeria. But is it even about having a dedicated ministry?

The key policy question is whether a separate ministry would improve accountability, funding, coordination, oversight, and efficient service delivery, or simply add another layer of bureaucracy to the current red-tapism we have? Your guess is as good as mine.

We already have the Nigerian Railway Corporation, the Railway Property Management Company Limited and the Rail Transport Services Department within the Ministry of Transportation, yet our train services are anything but reliable and efficient.

Okay, End of Rant.

By Tajuddeen Ahmad Tijjani

The Abuja-Kaduna train resumed operations after eight months of suspension due to the sad event of March 28, 2022, where terrorists attacked the train and kidnapped 168 passengers, killing eight others. Thus, the situation is now under control. Captives were freed and reunited with their families. We hope not to have a repeat of these ugly scenarios in the future. 

Behold, the Nigerian citizens can’t hide their excitement as the train is back on track after the unfortunate incident. We all call for a proper investigation into the circumstances and, at the same time, call on the authority to remain vigilant. 

However, citizens have the habit of crossing the railway track without proper guidance and caution, resulting in accidents and damage to the public infrastructure, which is public property that shouldn’t be dabbled with. 

There is a sad report of a Toyota Camry with a female occupant that was allegedly crushed by the train as it carelessly came to pass the track. Often those with prior knowledge of the train, especially as you leave Kubwa train station in the suburb of the city centre, Bwary Area Council, the community residents of that axis have a habit of trespassing anyhow without being cautious of the danger therein. This has, of course, inflicted untold hardship on the victims and, at the same time, damage to the slippers of the track. Perhaps people are not aware of the dangers or have deliberately neglected them. 

However, as I went to the axis some time ago, I observed a provision for a pedestrian channel to pass. Sadly, people develop the habit of going through the danger zone. It’s a patriotic call on the ministry of transport to take a leaf from the city centre and provide barricades in such a way that communities have to follow the normal route, which will indeed be a win-win situation, as neither the track will be damaged nor no accident will occur within that axis as long as proper precautions are taken. 

I also laud the measures of the management for the proper check and balance of passengers, where thorough screening is put up so that those with suspicious motives are apprehended. I call on the general public to give maximum support to security agencies and report any sceptical movement for the benefit of all Nigerians.

Tajuddeen Ahmad Tijjani writes from Galadima Mahmoud Street, Kasuwar Kaji Azare, Bauchi State.

By Safiyanu Ladan

Nigerian government suspended the Kaduna- Abuja train service operation following an attack by the dreaded Boko Haram Terrorists on 28 March 2022.

The attack in which 12 people were killed and 63 others abducted generated widespread outrage from Nigerians across the country. It also created a sense of fear in the mind of teeming travellers plying the ever-busy road every day that links the section of the northern part of the country with the nation’s seat of power (Abuja).

Some days after the unfortunate incident, the marauding and bloodthirsty terrorists released the Acting Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Bank of Agriculture, Alwan Hassan, on health grounds and after ransom was allegedly paid to the terrorists by his family.

In disturbing videos released by the terrorists, they have threatened to kill and sell the remaining captives if the government fails to meet their demands.

The intervention of Malam Tukur Mamu, a Kaduna-based publisher and chief of staff to renowned Islamic scholar Sheikh Dr Ahmad Gumi, saw the release of some of the victims after billions of naira were allegedly paid as ransom to the terrorists.

A heavy price follows the involvement of Mr Mamu as he’s currently languishing in the DSS custody awaiting trial.

In a statement, the Department of State Security said he was deported back to Nigeria from Egypt, where he was arrested and detained for 24 hours, to answer critical questions on ongoing investigations relating to some security matters in parts of the country.

The abrupt cessation of the train service due to the attack has cost Nigeria greatly, as billions of naira were lost. As of August 2022, the federal government has lost over 3 billion naira in revenue since it suspended the train services.

The release of the 23 remaining victims in October this year, facilitated and executed by the military, renewed Nigerians’ hopes for the resumption of the train service. 

Through the minister of transportation, Mu’azu Sambo, the Federal government has since announced that the train service will resume this month. Even though he did not reveal the specific date of the resumptions, Nigerians are anxiously waiting for the day.

Given the foregoing, the terrorists’ attack on the Kaduna-Abuja bound train has crippled many business activities and has triggered devastated socioeconomic conditions to many Nigerians whose means of livelihood solely depend on the service of the train.

We await the resumption of the train service before the end of this month. It’s our collective hope and prayer that the federal government is now equipped with adequate measures that will forestall the future occurrence of the sad and avoidable incident.

Safiyanu Ladan writes from Zaria.

By Muhammadu Sabiu

The Federal Government announced on Monday that the restoration of train service between Abuja and Kaduna is scheduled for this month, November.

The Transportation Minister, Mu’azu Sambo, said this in Abuja while presenting his ministry’s scorecard.

He claimed that sufficient security had been put in place to guarantee the well-being of the travellers. 

However, the Minister did not provide a precise start date.

The incident in March, which claimed the lives of several passengers and resulted in the suspension of rail operations on the Abuja-Kaduna route, according to Sambo, taught the ministry enough lessons.

By Ahmad Deedat Zakari

The negotiator of the Kaduna train hostage, Tukur Mamu, was arrested by Interpol on Tuesday in Egypt.

According to reports, Mamu was arrested and detained by Interpol at the International Airport in Cairo on his way to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. 

Mr Mamu, also the spokesperson of the Kaduna-based cleric, Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, led the negotiation to release some of the abductees of the March 2022 Kaduna train attack. 

Mr Mamu has confirmed his arrest to the press. He disclosed that he was released immediately after a search which found nothing unlawful on him.

Mr Mamu had earlier withdrawn from negotiating with terrorists. He cited threats to his life by the Nigerian government as the reason for his withdrawal.

By Aliyu Nuhu

It is obvious that the Nigerian government can rescue the train victims if it seeks outside’s technology. There are many options including combat gas that could neutralize the terrorists without any harm to the captives.

Russia used Opiate Fentanyl, a non-combat gas, meant for medical use to rescue people held in a theater. There were casualties because that gas should never have been used because people will need oxygen immediately after inhaling it to be able to survive. If we want non- lethal weapons there are options and we should reach out to Israeli or United States. If we want combat operation we should use Executive Outcome of South Africa. They have the specialty and night vision for rescue operation.

No responsible government will sit down and do nothing for fear of collateral damages, allowing terrorists to dictate terms to it. The Russian rescue mission had unfortunate outcome but it at least stopped future attacks.

In Nigeria you can be sure that this is not the last abduction because of the way we are mismanaging the situation. There are nerve agents that attack people by their DNA, meaning that, in a crowd of a million people, it will only kill the target person whose DNA is locked into the nerve agent.

The drone that killed Ayman Alzawahiri was meant to kill only him without harming his family. The special missile didn’t have explosives but piercing blades. There was no damage even to the building.

The mistake FG always make is talking to the terrorists. Listen to Garba Shehu saying the terrorists asked for their children, a special plane was sent to bring them. They asked for their women and the women were promptly released…, etc. Imagine! Each time terrorists abducted people, the FG will go into negotiation frenzy, begging them, giving them money, releasing captives and even sending them hard drugs and vehicles. That is a fatal mistake. It is the reason why abductions continue to fester. The terrorists don’t fear Nigerian government. They are even threatening to abduct the president. Worst is that they are in Nigerian soil. No terrorist can hold hostage in America or Israel. No way!

The FG should learn from United States and Israel. They are terrorists’ biggest customers. When terrorists commit crimes against America or Israel, the two countries don’t talk to them. What will follow is silence. The two countries don’t negotiate or listen to any demand. Then, you will see the terrorists becoming confused and going into hiding because they know their days are numbered, that death will come anytime because the CIA and Mossad are only gathering intelligence and planning. It doesn’t matter how long it takes. One day a terrorist leader will be driving and a drone will come from the skies and in seconds he is gone. One day he will be sleeping in his well hidden abode and in faraway Pakistan and commandos will fall from the sky and he is dead. One day he will just peep through the balcony and his head is cut off by a blade carrying missile.

A certain Hamas leader who was well disguised and relaxing in a Dubai hotel received a basketball dressed operatives of Mossad in the hotel that left him dead.

If we can’t do it, there are assistance waiting for us. We should seek help. We should train our security agents on it because terrorists have come to stay unless we stop talking to them and start seeking and killing them. The only language terror understands is violence.

But in Nigeria, we have leaders that don’t think at all and I am honestly disappointed with Buhari because he is a retired infantry general.

For violent crimes we need a special military tribunals to deal with them under the security situation we find ourselves. The president has powers to declare security emergency in the country. It means due process will be set aside and violent criminals will no longer face regular courts. The judges are afraid of adjudicating cases involving terrorists and kidnappers because of attacks on them and their families. They are human beings. A judge granted bail to kidnapper in Zaria because according to him his life was threatened. Also we don’t have hangmen to carry out execution.

Cases of kidnapping, terrorism and banditry are federal crimes handled by the attorney general and minister for justice. The man is busy pursuing money and political office to even think of his most important responsibilities. He also failed to delegate his powers to the state attorney generals.

The government cannot just fold its hands and watch. It must think of something and in that case firing squad is the answer under military courts. The military have no compunction taking human lives, they are trained to kill. Boko Haram and Ansaru are committing war crimes and anywhere in the world, war crimes are for special military tribunals, but in Nigeria, the criminals stay safe!

By Sumayyah Auwal Usman

The lead negotiator with the abductors of the Abuja-Kaduna train passengers, Malam Tukur Mamu, has confirmed that the remaining 27 victims of the train attack are still in captivity.

Mamu confirmed this in a press release he personally signed in Kaduna on Tuesday. He said “this is to confirm without doubt that the remaining 27 passengers of the train attack are still being held by their abductors, nearly 5 months after the unfortunate and preventable incidence”.

“Though I have disengaged myself from negotiating, anxious family members, pressmen and concerned Nigerians have been calling to confirm the veracity of the news while many others justifiably have been celebrating and even congratulating relatives of the innocent victims” he said.

“While it is a news we are all praying earnestly to hear, it is highly irresponsible for peddlers of FAKE NEWS to circulate sensitive contents that are not only unverifiable, untrue but news items that will certainly trigger anxiety and concerned amongst the family members of those that remained in captivity and millions of their well wishers across the globe”.

“The condition of the remaining victims is still very bad, many of them are sick, the raining season is affecting them so much. I urge President Muhammadu Buhari to intensify efforts in securing their release immediately as the situation remains highly unpredictable while the families of those that are still in the bush are incapacitated in whatever way to negotiate the safe release of their loved ones”.

By Hamza Muhammad Tasiu 

Let’s imagine this: 

You are a young mother. You leave Kaduna a few days earlier for a task in Abuja. After finishing the task, you call your husband and tell him that you will be coming back and that he should buy your best food from your best restaurant for you. You tell him how badly you miss him. You tell him that you’ve bought his favourite perfume for him. You even tell him that he should tell your little daughter that you have bought her a special present from Abuja.

And given that this is the first time you go to Abuja, you tell him that you have a lot of stories from the nation’s capital. So you stop and buy your mother apples and pineapples on your way to the train station. You also buy a new shirt for the Almajiri that runs errands for you.

You leave Idu station at 6 pm and are scheduled to arrive at Kaduna’s Rigasa train station by 8 pm. On the train, you say salaam to the other occupants and shake their hands. You smile at a little girl, and she smiles back. Her cute smile injects you with a dose of happiness you’ve not felt in a long time. The woman sitting next to you is an elderly woman in her late 60s. She looks like your mother. She starts a conversation, and, before long, you feel at home with her. You talk about a lot of things with her. You talk about the month of Ramadan and how you plan to spend it. You even tell her your readiness to fast throughout Ramadan as your ulcer seems to become dormant lately. She complains that she cannot fast as she is on medication. She says she will fast after finishing her drugs. 

Not more than 30 minutes into your journey, that woman now seems like someone you have known for many years. Amidst the exciting conversation you are having, she suddenly falls asleep. You want to continue the conversation but feel it uncourteous to wake her up from sleep. You allow her to continue sleeping. Before long, you also get overpowered by sleep due to the exhaustion from your work in Abuja. Suddenly, you wake up to the sounds of explosions and gunshots. In what seems like the twinkle of an eye, all the unlucky passengers are rounded up by the terrorists. They rain all sorts of abuse on you and force you to walk for tens of kilometres on foot in the bush.

Days have now become months, and you are still under the pharaonic care of these terrorists. You look at that older woman, and you feel sorry for her. Her health is deteriorating as she does not have the drugs that she takes three times a day. She often tells you in the night: “Zan mutu ‘ya ta. Ga ruwa, ga sauro, ga yunwa, ga duka, ga jinya. Ba zan iya ba. Karfi na ya kare!” But you give her words of encouragement and ask her to keep on, promising her that God will bring help.

Your comments seem to boost her spirit. She says to you: “Allah Ya miki albarka ‘ya ta. Da ba dan ke ba, da bansan inda zan sa kaina ba.” As soon as she closes her mouth, one of the terrorists says to her: “Idan ba kiyi shiru ba hajiya, zan zane ki wallahi! Kar kiga shekarun ki, yanzu zakiyi kuka wallahi! Kin manta dukan da aka muku da safe koh?” 

The elderly woman then says, somehow inaudibly: “Ya Allah ka saka mana. Ka mana hisabi da wadanda suka daurawa kansu nauyin kare mu amma suka banzantar da nauyin da suka daurawa kan su, amin.” As if someone has put her on a speaker, all the kidnapped victims say, “amin” in a resounding voice. The terrorists then descend on them, beating them mercilessly, saying: “Mu zaku hada da Allah? Wallahi zamu kashe ku gaba daya! Matsiyata kawai! Tsinannu! Idan ba a bamu kudi ba, wallahi sai mun kashe ku duka! Wahalallun banza! Dangin matsiyata!” You become angry because of the abuses they rain on you because you are someone your people highly respect, but then you remember there’s nothing you could do.

Back at home, your little daughter has been waiting for you for more than 100 days! All she can do is to pray to Allah to rescue you. She often tells her father: “Baba ni na hakura da present din, kawai ni mama nake so na gani. Dan Allah ka dawo da ita!” The father goes into his room and cries because there’s nothing he can do. He raises his hands in prayer: “Verily, the most helpless of people are those that are unable to ask for Your help. We ask for Your help regarding these servants. Rescue them, Ya Allah!

If this story touches you, then wait a minute and reflect on what the kidnapped victims are going through. Think of what their families are going through after watching that video. It’s devastating, to say the least. May God rescue them! The leadership has failed them!

Hamza Muhammad Tasiu 

By Muhammad Sabiu

The families of the seven captives released by the terrorists who attacked the AK-9 Abuja-Kaduna train have been reunited.

On Saturday, the terrorists freed a further group of seven captives after more than a hundred days in captivity.

According to reports, the terrorists released 11 of the remaining 50 hostages from the 61 victims of the kidnapped train passengers three weeks ago, leaving 43 hostages in their hideout.

The release of the hostages and their reunion with their families was announced on Sunday by Mallam Tukur Mamu, one of the negotiators and the media advisor to Islamic cleric Sheikh Ahmad Gumi.

The hostages include Bosede Olurotimi, Abubakar Zubairu, Alhassan Sule and Sadiq Ango Abdullahi, Muhammad Daiyabu Paki, Aliyu Usman as well as only foreign national of Pakistani origin, Dr Muhammad Abuzar Afzal.

By Uzair Adam Imam 

The National Assembly urged the Chinese government to help Nigeria rescue the Abuja-Kaduna abducted train passengers.

Today marks exactly 45 days since the 62 passengers were attacked and abducted while in transition on March 28, 2022.

The Daily Reality reported how bandits stormed the Abuja-Kaduna train, gunned down eight people and abducted over sixty people in March. 

The Chairman Senate Committee on Land Transportation, Senator Abdulfatai Buhari, expressed sadness over the failure to rescue the victims 45 days after.

Also, the people concerned have shown great sadness over the government’s failure to rescue their loved ones and threatened that the train service must not resume until those abducted have regained freedom. 

The lawmaker representing Oyo North in the National Assembly decried that the attack had created fear in the minds of Nigerians who had started embracing the railway.

He said, “The Chinese government makes money from the many rail projects that are being handled by CCECC in Nigeria, so asking them to help us is not out of place.

“Nigerians are no longer ready to listen to the number of passengers that have been carried by the trains since they were commissioned. Nigerians are not interested in what has been put in the various stations by the CCECC. What we want to hear now is the effort being put into rescuing those people in captivity.

“If a Chinese national was among those people abducted, we know that the Chinese government would have come to rescue him.

“I remember when an American was kidnapped, the Americans came and took him away from where he was held captive. We know that with the level of technology that the Chinese have, even without leaving Beijing, they can help us track where these people are, or even give us enough intelligence that would aid their rescue,” he added.