Why NRC, minister postponed rail tanker inauguration

The Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) postponed the inauguration of of compressed tanker wagon imported into the country through the Apapa port over explosive materials discovered on board the vessel that ferried the consignments.They were concealed in five containers. It was alleged that the Nigeria Police Force imported part of the arms, even as a call put through to the Police Affairs Ministry did not yield any result.Having arrived at the Greenview Development Terminal managed by the Dangote Group, the Minister of Transport, Senator Idris Umar who came for the inauguration was held down in the car for over 30 minutes.The Managing Director of the corporation Engr. Seyi Sijuwade explained that the minister was unable to inaugurate the wagons due to 'some technical hitches.'He declared: 'We have been asked to stop offloading the tanker wagons. In a few days, the minister will be here again after the tankers would have been completely offloaded to inaugurate them.'The inauguration of the 20 fuel tanker wagons designed for the haulage of petroleum products by the railway was foiled after an official of Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) stopped the offload of the tankers from the ship.The Federal Government had imported the tankers from China to kick start haulage of petrol and other refined oil products from the seaports to ease the roads of burden, believed to be responsible for the country's fast dwindling road infrastructure.The NIMASA's deputy director for Maritime Safety and Standards, Capt Warriddi Enisuoh explained why it could no longer be offloaded from the ship.The dangerous goods were in the manifest, the consignees had failed to confirm the products, adding that at a time in Nigeria, when bomb blasts had become the order of the day, the maritime agency could not afford to play with its security functions.He said: 'When we did a surveillance of this terminal this morning, this ship was not on berth, but we knew that it has been on the nation's waters in the last seven days. As much as the items in question were manifested, they needed to be confirmed by the consignees. 'Everyday in this country, we hear reports of hundreds of people being killed by bomb blasts in some parts of the country. We cann no longer joke with security as far as this agency is concerned.''However, I will not want to pre-empt the situation. We have begun an investigation to determine the exact nature of the arms.
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