The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) has refuted online reports alleging that the Lagos-Ibadan Standard Gauge Railway has been vandalised and rendered unsafe for commuters.
In a statement issued on Saturday in Lagos, NRC Managing Director, Dr Kayode Opeifa, through the corporation’s Chief Public Relations Officer, Mr Callistus Unyimadu, described the viral claims as misleading and based on outdated footage.
“The management of NRC has noted with concern a recent online publication alleging that vandals had damaged sections of the $1.5 billion Lagos-Ibadan rail corridor inaugurated in 2021. We wish to categorically state that the report is inaccurate,” the statement read.
Opeifa clarified that the vandalism depicted in the viral video did not occur on the standard gauge line but on the old narrow gauge railway running through Oyo State. According to him, the incidents occurred between August 7 and August 27, 2024, along the Omi-Adio to Erunmu axis, covering kilometre 170 to kilometre 240.
He revealed that vandals carted away 250 E-clips at kilometre 218, 16 short rails and one additional rail at kilometre 221, while a separate incident on September 9, 2024, resulted in the theft of 280 E-clips and two poles at kilometre 219.
The NRC boss added that immediate countermeasures were implemented, including collaboration with Erunmu community leaders, local vigilante groups, and the police. The corporation also launched sensitisation campaigns at Agodi Gate to discourage scrap dealers from purchasing stolen railway materials.
“These efforts led to the arrest of several suspects, who have since been handed over to the Railway Police Command in Lagos for interrogation and prosecution,” Opeifa said, noting that there have been no new cases of vandalism since the interventions.
He urged the public to disregard false reports linking the incidents to the Lagos-Ibadan Standard Gauge Railway and warned that anyone caught sabotaging railway infrastructure would face the full weight of the law.
