Wamakko kicks against $1.5bn Kano-Kaduna rail

The Federal Government’s plan to invest 1.2 billion US dollars to build a standard gauge railway from Kano to Kaduna is a misplacement of priorities because that amount of money can rebuild all the Federal highways in the North West zone, Senator Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko said in Abuja yesterday.

Wamakko, who is a former Governor of Sokoto State, said all the states in the region including Kano and Kaduna are suffering due to the dilapidated nature of inter-state roads in the region.

Rather than build a Kano-Kaduna rail line that will not have a lot of goods to carry, he said if this amount of money is invested to rehabilitate the region’s highways, it will not only ease the movement of goods and people but will also save dozens of lives that are being lost daily to the poor state of the roads.

Wamakko, who is the chairman of the Senate Committee on Basic and Secondary Education, also said the money could additionally help to resuscitate the region’s many comatose industries and provide millions of jobs for the youths.

Minister of Transport Mr Rotimi Amechi had said in Kano on Saturday that the Federal Government has approved 1.2 billion US dollars for the construction of the Kano-Kaduna standard gauge railway project.

Speaking when he visited Governor Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, Amaechi said the Federal Government was negotiating with China EXIM bank to finance the project.ý the negotiation will end by June, he said.

Wamakko however said the money could be more usefully deployed in areas that have a stronger potential to kick start economic and social activities in the region.