The Nigerian Union of Railway Workers (NURW) has faulted the arrest of its members by the Borno State Police Command.
DAILY POST recalls that the police in Borno had on Saturday arrested some personnel of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC).
The Police also alleged that the arrested personnel could not identify themselves and accused them of attempting to steal train coaches.
The Union, through its National President, Mr Innocent Ajiji, disclosed this while addressing journalists in Jos, the Plateau State capital, on Sunday.
Ajiji, who faulted the move, maintained that the arrested persons were bonafide personnel of the corporation.
He explained that the coaches were being moved to Jos for the commencement of train services by NRC in Plateau.
“I am in Jos to monitor the ongoing activities because the Plateau State Government has the intention of running a rail mass transit that will cover Jos, Kuru and Heipang areas.
“But we do not have any coach in Jos, and as a result, coaches are being conveyed from Maiduguri to be refurbished and used to run the mass transit here.
“The remaining coaches will be taken to another location because railway management has the intention to run inter-state mass transit.
“The first coach has arrived in Jos by road and this is because our tracks have been stolen, and we can’t convey the coaches by rail,” he said.
The president alleged that its members were arrested at the point of conveying the coaches on the directive of Gov. Babagana Zulum of Borno State.
He explained that the persons arrested were acting on the directive of the management of NRC, adding that it officially wrote to the Commissioner of Police in Borno State, notifying him of the need to convey its items from Maiduguri to Jos.
“Our members went to Maiduguri to convey three other coaches to Jos, but the police arrested them, and as we speak, they are in custody.
“All efforts to release them proved abortive. The police alleged that those coaches were stolen, but that’s not true.
“The person they are alleging that he is the prime suspect is Engr Aliyu Mainasara, our Regional District Manager in the North-East.
“He is not a thief and so we call on the commissioner to immediately release our members, and we will be forced to down tools and stop all trains all over Nigeria from moving if this is not done,” he said.
Ajiji also explained that the coaches have not been put to use for the past 20 years, insisting that they were being transferred to Jos for proper utilisation.
“Since Boko Haram started, all our tracks were carted away by the insurgents; our bridges were all also destroyed.
“In fact, from Maiduguri to Bajoga, there is no single track on the ground because they have been carted away by these criminals.
“So, we are bringing these coaches to Jos and other places to put them to proper use,” he said.
The president also explained that the management of NRC has the right to move its facilities from one point to another for usage.
