29th July, 2020
The Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, has ordered security personnel at the Abuja-Kaduna train station terminus to deny access to anyone without a face mask.
Amaechi gave the order when he visited the Idu Train Terminal to inspect passengers’ compliance with the COVID-19 safety measures on Wednesday.
His visit followed the reopening of services after four months lockdown due to the pandemic.
On the increased transportation, Amaechi said the government does not have money to subsidise the fare, so passengers would have to bear the risk.
He added: “Even before the pandemic, we were under pressure from even people in Kaduna asking us to increase the rate.
“We just provide the services for everybody not because we want to make a profit. At this stage we are not making profit, it’s just to recoup the running cost.
Amaechi said that incidences of eminent personalities flouting Nigeria Centre for Disease Control’s (NCDC) COVID-19 safety measures at airports would not be condoned at train stations.
He encouraged passengers to imbibe the simple, safety basics, saying “protecting ourselves against COVID-19 takes no special training.”