Tinubu pledges to complete Eastern Rail line

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has promised that his administration will complete the Eastern Rail line connecting Port Harcourt to Maiduguri. The president gave the assurance during an interactive session with South East leaders during his official visit to Enugu State on Saturday. The president also pledged that his administration would support the development of the […]

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has promised that his administration will complete the Eastern Rail line connecting Port Harcourt to Maiduguri.

The president gave the assurance during an interactive session with South East leaders during his official visit to Enugu State on Saturday.

The president also pledged that his administration would support the development of the Anambra Basin as a significant energy reserve for the country.

The basin is estimated to hold up to 1 billion barrels of oil and 30 billion cubic feet of gas.

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In one of their demands to the president, Onyemauche Nnamani, the National Commissioner representing the South East in the Police Service Commission called on President Tinubu to implement modern security strategies in the region, akin to the statewide CCTV system and patrol cars with surveillance cameras being implemented by the Enugu State Governor Peter Mbah.

Nnamani called on the federal government to de-emphasise  checkpoints and roadblocks in the region, saying, “It is inefficient and exposes our security personnel to attacks by non-state actors.”

Former Minister of Power Professor Chinedu Nebo and Enugu State indigene Chris Ugoh also made the request about the Railway line and Anambra Basin which the President responded with a commitment to address.

While applauding the Tinubu administration for completing the Port Harcourt to Aba section of the Eastern rail line, Nebo appealed to the president to prioritise the completion of the remaining portions of the rail link.

He emphasised the rail link’s potential to boost Nigeria’s non-oil exports and economic growth.

Ugoh noted that the Anambra Basin has the potential to support power generation and industrial feedstocks.

He appealed to the Federal Government to develop this resource to benefit the southeast and other regions of the country, including the Middle Belt and the North.

Responding to the request for the rail line, President Tinubu reassured the audience, saying, “It is a work in progress. I inherited some of these critical problems and am committed to solving them.”