My Abuja-Kaduna Train Experience, Governance can actually Work

    

So I had a meeting in Kaduna for 10am on a Monday and I was faced with thoughts of how to get there. I weighed the different options available for me to reach Kaduna. Road trips along the Abuja-Kaduna highways have lost their appeal for me not with the high rate of kidnapping along the high way and an ever increasing media reports of these unfortunate incidents. The number of security officials deployed along the highway has not made it any safer for some of us. That is  a story for another day!

So, I took the train option, the first class train option in Nigeria! Am I dreaming? This is impressive. A quick check online on the Nigerian Railway Corporation’s website shows that I can’t book online yet the options are available. Hmmm, this is getting interesting. I could still see the available arrival and departure time schedule for the trains so I had options and a fair idea of when I should leave home. I left home same Monday at 5:40am and arrived at the train station a little after 6am. Paid N3,000 for a my ticket-first class ticket and I was shown the way to the waiting arena. The waiting arena is sparkling clean with a classy look than what we currently have at the airports. There are also notices on what is allowed onboard the coaches just the way you have it at the airports and the security checks of luggage was on point and computerized. What? This is good!

I could see Hajias and Alhajis who were probably returning after spending the weekend in Abuja or going for business. I could see some undergraduate students returning to school, I could see top ranking military officers perhaps going to some of the military institutions/formations in Kaduna state. White people were also not left out with their business suitcases striding the clean platforms of the train station. The station had everyday people going into and coming out of the coaches. This reminds me of one of my lecturers in The Netherlands who was working in The Hague and living in Brussels in Belgium. He commutes everyday to teach us in Den Haag and returns back to Brussels.

So I took the lift up (another sweet cozy place) and entered my coach and as a sharp Warri babe, I quickly found a seat to charge my devices! Wetin concern me with seat no? That was not until someone came and gently smiled at me and said “that is my seat- someone else also moved me from where I was sitting”. We both laughed. I am sure we can all relate as it applies to experiences with seat numbers on the planes. So I moved and located seat No 2 as indicated on my ticket; thankfully I had a good sitting partner. We shared our amazement at the whole arrangement and experience of this rail journey. We took pictures of the country sides, high rocks, green fertile fields with flourishing flora and fauna etc. Meeehn, Nigeria has some good landmass. This scenery is what you don’t get on a road trip. Everybody on board is behaving prim and proper; everyone talking about this experience. It is one of the best things to happen to the transport industry and to Nigerians. There are overhead DVDs that play movies as you move along the journey. There is even a Nurse onboard in case of any medical emergencies at least for first aid treatment. I hope it remains this way. I think the management deserves huge accolades for keeping it clean and efficient-both in Kaduna and Abuja.

One of the highpoints for me on this trip is the excellent timing just like you have it in western countries like the Euro star Trains etc. So a 7:00am departure train leaves at exactly that time. At the Rigasa Train Station in Kaduna upon arrival, I bought my return ticket for 2:00pm. I had to leave my meeting at 1pm to meet up with the 2pm train. In fact, talking about it makes me feel proud as in ‘I have a train to catch at 2pm’ We boarded a few minutes to 2pm and at exactly 2pm, we left the train station! Is this a dream? Can this be happening to us? Please Nigerian Railway Corporation when are we having Lagos to Abuja, Abuja to Port Harcourt, Kano-Ibadan, Aba-Ilorin coaches? What about cargo trains? This will certainly boost commerce and generate more revenue for the country.

So how can we situate this experience within the governance and development discourse in Nigeria? First, what this tells me is that we can actually make things work if we are determined to. Our leaders can actually make our lives better. Governance is not about politics and politicking the way some persons have seen it. Governance for me is about making lives better and easier for the citizens; citizens having access to the very basic infrastructures and social amenities. It was Amartya Sen who talked about Development as freedom. So, whether it was President Buhari or former President Goodluck Jonathan’s regime built this rail system, it does not matter for the average Nigerian. What is of paramount importance for us is the ease with which we can move between Abuja and Kaduna and conduct our business in a safe and timely manner and in an inviting conducive environment than the recent wrangling I saw in the media about who built the Abuja-Kaduna Rail System. For now, I am onboard taking coffee in an AC-chilled Coach!