How The Railway Helped Jos Develop
The extension of the rail tracks from Kafanchan to Jos in 1927 quickened the development of business activities which culminated in what Jos is today. Although the extension of the rail tracks to Jos is not far removed from the mining activities which attracted people (including the colonial masters) from different parts of the country […]
The extension of the rail tracks from Kafanchan to Jos in 1927 quickened the development of business activities which culminated in what Jos is today. Although the extension of the rail tracks to Jos is not far removed from the mining activities which attracted people (including the colonial masters) from different parts of the country to the mining sites in search of fortunes beneath the earth, the extension was solely to facilitate the free evacuation of minerals found on the Plateau to the sea ports.
Akinwoye Abdulraouf is the District Public Relations Officer (DPRO) of the North Central Zone, Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC). He explained that, “Jos is as old as the railways and the present Jos railway station was commissioned in the year 1927. Even before the commissioning of that station, rail operations started in Nigeria in 1900. The construction started from Lagos to Jebba, and then to Minna, before getting to Kaduna and then networking from Port Harcourt to Makurdi to Kafanchan. Then, it was extended to Jos, and to Bauchi and from Bauchi to Maiduguri”.
But like the two sides of a coin, while the Jos railway station which is under the North Central District of the (NRC) which has its headquarters in Kafanchan, served as a connect for the free flow of goods in the north, Jos, a city endowed with good weather, gradually turned from a small settlement for the explorers of mineral resources, to a modern city with huge investments flourishing everywhere.
Historians may not take it mildly, if one speaks of what constitutes Jos today, without mentioning mining and rail activities, just as the DPRO confirmed “what really gave rise to rail activities or connecting Jos by rail is mining activities. It gave rise to an urgent need to extend the rail lines to Jos. The existing rail network you are seeing today was championed by our colonial masters, so all these were accomplished before independence. At that time, the centre of mining in Nigeria was Jos. The rail network in Nigeria today and even then, centred on the movement of goods from the hinterlands to the seaports. So, to ensure the free flow of this movement, this necessitated the need to have rail lines in Jos”.
Although discarded a long time ago, there used to be the existence of an old rail line that shuttled between Jos and Zaria which used lighter rail, compared to the existing ones. The existence of that particular rail ensured the movement of cotton products from Zaria, which was shifted to Jos for onward movement to the sea ports. “It may interest you to know that there used to be a direct line (Old Jos –Zaria line) directly from Jos to Zaria. Up till today, we still have that track called ‘Roama’ line .It is a light rail not this bigger ones. That was what they were using then that connected Jos to Zaria”.
According to Abdulraouf, “the inception of a rail line from Jos to Zaria was to make things easy, so that cotton produce can pass through Jos and then get to the seaports. So that instead of going from Zaria – Kaduna and Kaduna – Kafanchan, it will carry the cotton from Zaria, pass through Jos and then Jos to Kafanchan, and finally to the seaports, because it was easier to connect Port Harcourt using the route”.
Giving it a name which it was popularly referred to then, 68 year old Alhaji Rufa’i Abubakar whose father served as the Veterinarian for herds that were transported through the rail line to the South, corroborated that assertion thus, “that Jos – Zaria track used to be called “Dan Zaria” shuttling between Jos and Zaria to ensure the movement of goods”.
Indeed, the ripples created by mining activities, which attracted the extension of rail tracks did not stop there. It snowballed into a rapid development of Jos, making it a fast growing cosmopolitan city.
Alhaji Abubakar further explained. “Although Jos was occupied by tin explorers, who came from different parts of the country, the city experienced speedy development when the rail tracks reached the town. That provided people with a cheaper means of transportation from one destination to the other. Two, it also provided an opportunity where goods were exchanged from one part of this country to another. I believe that it amounts to discarding of a significant era to speak of the development of Jos as a city, without mentioning the contributions and presence of the railway”.
“In a nutshell, mining attracted the extension of the rail lines and the presence of the rail lines served as one of the major impetus for the development of Jos city”, he stressed.
Abdulraouf also added that “the whole thing centre on mining because the pre -occupation of people in Jos, where ever you come from, it was mining that brought them. There was tin and columbite and the people who were at the centre of the operation of this mining business were the Yorubas and the Hausas who gave rise to Jos being a very busy place and a commercial centre. At that time, Jos used to be very alive. Things were okay and the economic buoyancy of this country then rested on rail activities. So, rail determined the economy of this country at that time, even after independence”, he said.
The viability of the rail sector cannot be compared with any sector then, because even at the political level when the Governor – General is out of the country, it was the General Manager of the railways who took over the affairs of the country. Even at the social level, a woman who married a rail worker then was considered luckier than others.
Abdulraouf explained, “In the past, if you are not in the railways, you are not living. You cannot be counted among the rich in the society. So, when a woman is not privileged to have a man from the railways to marry, you will be deemed as one who has not done well. And it may interest you to know that when the railways was really railway, when the Governor -General of Nigeria was out of the country, it was the General Manager of the railways that took charge. So, whatever you can think up in terms of agencies whether NEPA, even the Ports Authority were under the railway. That is why in Lagos today, Ports Authority doesn’t have its own hospital. It is the railway medical centre in Ebute Metta that they are using because there was nothing more than the railway then. So, in a nutshell, whatever you see in Jos is as a result of the mining activities in Jos, giving birth to a lot of commercial activities and eventually giving rise to the inception of the rail lines”.
As an employer of labour, the railway claimed to be above other existing organizations as it provided job opportunities for many. “We cannot run away from the fact that as an organization, there was no other organization that employed people like the railways. If you ask most of the Yoruba, who settled in Jos, they will tell you that they are from the railway family. If they are not from the railway, then maybe they are from the mining family. Therefore, most of the people who came to Jos, especially Igbos and Yorubas came by rail. Many people also came for tourism expeditions to have a feel of Jos city .At the end of the day, they decided to settle in Jos. And even the missionaries too”, Abdulraouf added.
When asked to recall the good old days of Jos as a railway city, Mr. David Musa, 66 (not real names) a former track attendant at the Jos railway station, with a feeling of nostalgia, explained thus, “the Terminus market you see in Jos came to be as a result of the rail station, which is the terminal point of trains that came to Jos”. He explained further. “At that time, the railway station in Jos had a one stop market where, when you arrive in a train from the South, you can buy all that you want and go back within the station. At the same time, people in Jos used to come to the station and even spend the night there whenever they hear that a train was coming. Then the compound of the railway used to be filled up with people brushing each other, trying to buy, load or off load items. Those days were really glorious”, he recalled.
No doubt Jos and other rail cities have experienced those glorious days. But what many stop to ponder is; what happened to the sector that led to the development of many towns like Jos? Jos, in particular, as a railway city, has developed beyond imagination. But the agents who helped to actualise that, such as the railway activities, are currently nowhere to be found. What really happened? Abdulraouf explained “The deteriorating level we are in today started in the early 80s. So, I can assure you that from the year 1927 up to even the 1970s, activities were still at their peak and we traversed up to Bauchi where we used to carry cement in Ashaka and so many other things, including the passenger train from Lagos to Jos and Lagos to Maiduguri”.
Many are also of the view that the collapse of the railway sector in those years were caused by previous governments who allowed the sector to die, where they shifted their concentration on other alternative means of transport. Mr Musa has this to add, “successive governments are responsible for the current state of the railway sector in the country. Road construction was given prominence over the railway. Sometimes, you will even see roads constructed on rail tracks, without any due consideration to the existing rail tracks, which could result in negative effects such as accidents or even pollution”.
He further explained that even in terms of fund allocation, the rail sector was underfunded, which resulted in the laying off of many staff of the railways, adding that, “the emergence of other alternative means of transportation also contributed to the sorrowful condition of the rail sector”. The DPRO added, “we used to have a passenger train from Jos to Lagos and Port Harcourt, but since the patronage was very low people are now used to night bus. Since it takes you two or three days before you get to your destination, people don’t normally travel by rail again and that led to the stoppage of that trend. Although, currently, our major customers, the Grand Cereal, we carry vital feeds and other products from Jos to Aba on a regular basis”.
Earlier, it appeared that all hope was lost on the rail sector, as many of the rail cities across the country, including Jos, were involved in other activities. Some months back in Jos, it was common to see people trespassing through the reception of the station to reach their destinations, as there were neither rail activities nor the presence of even a single train on the track.
But of recent, things seemed to be changing for the better. When this reporter visited the premises of the station, it was wearing a new look and better days are being promised. As a starter, the NRC in Jos is about to begin a mass transit shuttle between Jos and Kuru. The DPRO said, “what we are trying to do now is to have a general mass transit train. That will start very soon. Jos happens to be one of the six cities that will benefit. If you go round Jos you will see Halt Stations renovated and created”.
He added, “in times to come, there will be mass transit trains that will be running from Jos to Kuru, and Kuru to Jos on a daily basis and that has been finalized. The federal government has approved a specialized mass transit system in these six cities: We are starting with Kano very soon. Kano, Jos, Maiduguri, Enugu, Port Harcourt and Lagos, to cover the six geopolitical zones in the country. So the one for the North Central has been allocated to Jos”.
According to Abdulraouf, the NRC in Jos is about recruiting those who will work in the Jos station. “Jos will still pick up in terms of rail activities. You have not seen anything. It will still go back to its former glory, and that is just what is responsible for the renovations. We are starting with Kano, because Kano is now more or less a pace setter”.
Asked whether Jos could regain its glorious railway days, Mr Musa, who expressed optimism, said, “all the government needs to do is to put more commitment to it. There is nothing that is impossible, especially when it involves the government. The government should also view the rail sector as complementary to other alternative means of transportation and the rail sector will be what it used to be”.
Alhaji Abubakar opined, “that the revival of the sector will not only help the economy, but will also provide job opportunities for our teeming youths who have nothing doing.
Speaking of haulage and affordability, the DPRO explained, that, railway remains the cheapest and the safest mode of transport because if you are talking about the possibility of accidents, it is very rare. “In terms of haulage, we take the strength. Nobody has the enormous capability like the railway. For instance, a coach carries a minimum of 90 and a maximum of 100 passengers and you can have fifteen or more coaches in one train”.
He added that a full scale mass transit programme is on the way, which will be launched with new locomotive engines, pointing out that the reason why the full scale services have not commenced is because, “they are working on the rail lines and with that, there can’t be movement. So that is why we are working on the mass transit train, so that it will operate within the cities first, while they are busy working on the tracks”.
National President, Miners Association of Nigeria, Alhaji Sani Shehu, speaks on the advantages of the sector if revived “rehabilitating the railway system will solve the problems of transporting our mineral products to various ports in the country. Currently, we have no option than to transport the products by road, and in doing that, we encounter a lot of inconveniences. We are overcharged by the trailers. We have experiences where goods get missing while on transit. We also have experience of delays. Sometimes, it takes three to four days for our items to arrive Lagos or Port Harcourt and these are all problems that a good railway system would have overcome”.
According to Alhaji Shehu, “in developed and even in developing nations like our neighbour Ghana, they have an integral and effective rail system that is working. If the rail system is developed, it can elongate the life span of our roads. It has multiple benefits to government, miners and to other businesses that are involved in export and import. So, on the whole, we are making a passionate appeal to government to put more efforts to ensure that the sector regains it glorious days”.
No doubt, the injection of more funds into the sector and a careful and close monitoring of the execution of the railway projects across the country will go a long way to augment the speedy development of many businesses in the country, particularly in the tin city.