Passengers stranded as NRC

Passengers stranded as NRC rejects old Naira notes for train transportation

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Tola Adenubi – Lagos

 

 

About ten passengers were on Wednesday afternoon left stranded following the refusal of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) to sell tickets to passengers who had old Naira notes with them.

Findings by the Tribune Online revealed that the early morning train to Ibadan was almost marred by protest following the initial refusal of the NRC to collect old Naira notes.

“When the early morning passengers became agitated and tension was brewing, the NRC was forced to accept old Naira notes and the early morning train was then allowed to leave for Ibadan in peace.

“However, this afternoon, we were directed not to collect the old Naira notes. The 4 pm train just left for Ibadan and about ten passengers couldn’t board because they didn’t have the new Naira notes.

“Why there was so much confusion with the morning train was because the number of passengers with old Naira notes far outweigh the number of those with new Naira notes. But this afternoon train that left around 4 pm didn’t experience such confusion because only ten passengers had old Naira notes with them.

“What will happen tomorrow morning is what we don’t know since we have been directed not to collect the old Naira notes.

“We have since the suspended collection of old Naira notes on the Lagos Mass Transit Trains. The decision to suspend collection of old Naira notes onboard the Lagos-Ibadan train just started yesterday afternoon,” an NRC worker who wouldn’t want her name in print told the Tribune Online exclusively.

Speaking on the development, a train passenger and Managing Director of First Fit Nigeria Limited, Mr Eric Umezurike, said that a Federal Government agency like the Nigerian Railway Corporation is in a better position to collect old naira notes and exchange same seamlessly with its sister agency like the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

According to him, “if a government agency is rejecting old Naira notes at a period when the case was still pending in court, what would be the expectations from market women supermarkets and petrol attendants.”

Speaking with journalists at the Mobolaji Johnson Station, some of the passengers who couldn’t board the 4 pm train vowed to stage protests at the train station next time they are denied access over old Naira notes issue.

“We won’t take this lightly next time we come here. The train is government property and belongs to all of us because they were built with taxpayer’s money. Even if government collect loans to build the trains, the government is paying back those loans with taxpayer money.

“We won’t take it lightly next time we come here and they (NRC) refuse to allow us to board because of old Naira notes issue,” some of the passengers lamented.

When contacted, the NRC Lagos District Manager, Engineer Augustine Arisa said he cannot comment on the issue as he is not in Lagos but in Papalanto, Ogun State for some routine checks on the railway station.

“I am not in Lagos now. I cannot confirm if it’s true we are not collecting the old Naira notes. I am in Papalanto, Ogun State for some routine maintenance works,” Arisa said.

Also, the Deputy Director, Public Relations of the NRC, Mahmood Yakub denied knowledge of the development when contacted on the phone by our correspondent.

Efforts to get the Managing Director of the NRC, Engineer Fidet Okhiria proved abortive as he didn’t pick up his calls at the time of filing this report.

 

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