Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, has said the sharp drop in manpower of the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation attached to Nigerian railway projects due to COVID-19 is slowing down the pace of work on the new Lagos-Ibadan rail line.
He, however, expressed optimism that the project would be ready in record time, especially for the end of the year trips.
Amaechi spoke with journalists at Moniya Railway Station, Ibadan, during a routine inspection tour of the new rail line that took off from Ebute Meta Railway Complex, Lagos.
The minister was accompanied by the Ben Akabueze, Director General Budget Office of the Federation; Managing Director, Nigerian Railway Corporation, Fidet Okhiria; Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Transportation, Dr Magdalene Ajani, among others.
The minister said he had advised the contractor handling the project, CCECC, to hire more workers and ensure they follow all safety protocols for coronavirus for adequate protection.
It was learnt that not some of the Chinese working on the project that travelled back to China before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic had not returned to the country.
It was also learnt that the 10,000 contract workers handling different aspects of the project before the pandemic had been cut down to about 3,000.
Amaechi said, “We’ve told the contractors on the Lagos-Ibadan rail project to engage more workers across all stations for prompt completion.”
He added that a Nigerian team would meet with the CCECC managers on Tuesday to discuss measures to accelerate work on the project.
“On all other projects, including Ibadan-Kano, due to the slow pace of work on the Lagos -Ibadan, we have said that we will not commence work on any other contract until we have a comprehensive programme of work so that we see when you start, when you finish and the facilities that you need,” Amaechi said.
The minister debunked a report that his ministry was seeking over $650 million loan to complete ongoing work on the Lagos-Ibadan and Warri-Itakpe rail lines, noting that the funds sought for the projects had long been approved.
“I read somewhere that we are looking for additional $650 million for the expansion works on the Lagos-Ibadan and Itakpe-Warri corridors. This is not true.
“We said we would be needing $1.6 billion and that was long ago. The money has since been approved. It is not as if we are looking for additional funds for these projects. It is important that I clarify that.”
The minister also visited the signal control building for the new line being constructed in Lagos, apart from railway stations between Lagos and Ibadan to assess the level of work done.