To understand why Nigeria’s railways sector has blossomed in the last 100 days, it is good we understand the trajectory that led to the emergence of Sa’idu Ahmed Alkali as the Minister of Transportation and his antecedents.
When President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was shopping for ministers, he paid special attention to the transport ministry for its capacity to speed up his transformation agenda.
The administration came on the high-powered wheels tagged: “Renewed Hope”, meant to save Nigerians from hopelessness. The president promised to deliver and Nigerians have high expectations. The president is well aware that Nigerians had witnessed so many unfulfilled promises that they were almost hopeless. And to achieve what is called sustainable development targeted at addressing the current challenges facing the country without jeopardising the future needs of the country, Nigeria’s transportation system has to be overhauled.
Effective transportation has the ability to speed up Nigeria’s development as it has the capacity to embolden the country economically to compete with developed countries.
Another issue is the fact that the transport ministry requires someone with great expertise, self-discipline and the right attitude to work. Alkali was picked for the job because of his track record and readiness to serve.
Who is Sen. Alkali?
Born in Dukku District of the defunct North Eastern State, now in Gombe State, in 1969, Alkali was a three-term senator who represented Gombe North.
Alkali obtained a BSc in economics from the University of Maiduguri (Unimaid) and worked with the Dukku LGC and later joined the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). He was appointed the Executive Secretary of the Gombe State Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board by ex-Governor Danjuma Goje in 2003.
In 2007, Senator Alkali was appointed Commissioner for Information during Goje’s second tenure as governor. He was elected a senator in an August, 2010, by-election after the death of Senator Kawu Peto Dukku.
Alkali emerged as the consensus candidate of the PDP primarily because he was an indigene of Dukku LGA, late Peto’s LGA. He was re-elected in the 2011 general elections.
In 2017 he defected to the APC, where he contested and defeated the then Governor Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo in the 2019 general elections.
He served in the 6th, 7th and 9th assemblies, chairing various senate standing committees.
However, Senator Alkali lost the Gombe North senatorial seat to former Governor Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo in the 2023 general elections in a poll that was described as a re-match of the 2019 polls.
He holds the honourary title of Sarkin Gabas Dukku and is a close associate of Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya and an intimate friend of Vice President Kashim Shettima.
As minister
The very day Alkali assumed office he rolled out his mission and vision which would serve as a blueprint for the ministry for the next four years and beyond. In the opening pages of the blueprint is the reactivation of road transportation and mass transit operations in the country.
This is rooted in his commitment to ensuring the realisation of the Renewed Hope agenda of the Tinubu administration.
Alkali said he would achieve his dream through effective supervision, monitoring and evaluation of the performance of all the departments of the ministry and its agencies to meet operational standards, judicious expenditure management and optimal productivity.
Alkali’s next line of action was to embark on a nationwide inspection of inherited railway projects across the country aimed at swift revamping of railway services.
He inspected the Kano-Maradi railway project. The level of the work was so far very satisfying. Hopefully, the project will be completed in 2025.
His inspection tour took him to the Muhammadu Buhari University of Transportation in Daura where he was conducted around the campus by the Vice Chancellor, Prof Adam Umar.
The University of Transportation is key to Alkali’s development agenda, being a ground where local engineers would be bred and nurtured to serve the country in this regard.
Alkali also inspected railway projects which include the Ibadan-Kano Standard Gauge ($5.3bn); the $11.17bn Lagos-Calabar coastal railway project; the $3.02bn rehabilitation project for the Eastern Line (Port Harcourt-Maiduguri) and the $1.9bn Kano-Maradi railway project; the $11.17bn Lagos-Calabar coastal railway project and the the Kano-Katsina-Jibiya-Maradi-Kano-Dutse line which were stalled because of lack of funds.
Alkali’s strides
Lagos-Ibadan Standard Gauge
The much-anticipated 157-km long Lagos-Ibadan Standard Gauge Line has kicked off with three cargo trains.
Alkali flagged off the freight train loaded with 30 wagons to Ibadan from the Apapa Port Complex. The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) said three trains of 30 wagons would be lifted daily out of the port thereby decongesting the port environment.
Container evacuation
The “Massive Container Evacuation Initiative to Revolutionise Nigeria’s Economy: Groundbreaking Effort to Decongest Apapa Port and Boost National Growth” has since begun under the leadership of Alkali.
The initiative involves the loading and transportation of 30-coach container wagons, carrying a staggering 90 trucks of 40-foot containers three times daily from the Apapa Port to various destinations across the country.
In the same vein, the project would revolutionise the Nigerian economy by addressing the logistical bottlenecks that have plagued the Apapa Port for years; foster a conducive business environment and attract increased investment opportunities in the country.
Other immediate benefits of the project include alleviating the strain on the port’s infrastructure, leading to smoother operations and enhanced efficiency.
Standard gauge to Apapa Port
To ensure easy access to the Apapa Port, the minister said that the customs building obstructing the standard gauge would be removed in three months’ time.
Previously, the building had stalled the linkage to the Apapa Port, forcing the NRC to temporarily bypass it and create a track in order to start freight services on the Lagos-Ibadan Railway.
He said it is unfair that the building was preventing the completion of two standard gauge lines to convey containers from Lagos to Kano within three months.
He also gave NRC three weeks to complete the operationalisation of the Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu Train Station at Apapa.
Alkali also pledged to ensure the payment of the long unimplemented presidential approval for the upward review of their special allowances.
Cargo movement
Senator Alkali inaugurated the first cargo movement from the Lagos-Ibadan rail corridor during his first official tour of the corridor. He kicked off the tour at the Ebute Meta station before proceeding to Apapa for the launch and then moved to Ibadan using the 157km rail corridor.
Three coaches of 30 wagons were loaded as the inaugural freight movement was kicked off.
The programme is expected to decongest the Apapa Port as shippers moved 92.28 percent of Nigeria’s total exports and 60.77 percent of imports through the facility in the first quarter of 2022 (Q1’22).
The transport ministry under the watch of Alkali prioritises infrastructure development and is doing everything possible to deliver on its promises to the Nigerian people.
Some of these promises include the completion of the Port Harcourt to Maiduguri Narrow Gauge Railway Project. Once completed, it is expected to facilitate the movement of goods and people, stimulate regional trade and contribute to the overall socio-economic advancement of the country; rehabilitation and reconstruction of the 2,044.1km Port Harcourt-Maiduguri Eastern Narrow Gauge, among others.
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