By; MATTHEW UKACHUNWA, Lagos
Some members of staff of Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) have been suspended for allegedly negotiating with passengers onboard Lagos-Ibadan Train Service (LITS) to pay fare without obtaining official boarding ticket.
Deputy Director, Public Relations of NRC, Mr. Yakub Mahmood, disclosed the development in a statement titled, “Railway Suspends Erring Staff.”
“This misconduct is regrettable and unacceptable as it negates the tenets and norms of the Corporation. The Corporation has therefore placed the identified erring officers on immediate suspension pending the outcome of the in-depth investigation already ongoing by the Management Committee set up to look into the issue,” Mahmood wrote in the statement made available on Wednesday.
NRC meted out the suspension to the workers following a viral video on various social media platforms showing the workers negotiating with passengers to pay without obtaining official boarding ticket.
The Corporation condemned the misconduct, describing it as “a flagrant disobedience to the laid down rules and utter betrayal of the confidence reposed on such workers, especially at this time that the federal government is making efforts at revitalising and modernising the corporation.”
The Corporation assured that disciplinary proceedings in line with the extant rules citing relevant sections of the NRC General Rules and Public Service Rules (PSR) will be visited on those found wanting or connected with irresponsible act.
The Management of Nigerian Railway Corporation therefore enjoined passengers to demand and insist on being issued boarding tickets after making appropriate payment at designated stations or book online appropriately.
“Please note that the electronic ticketing system is been deployed and will be available on both the Lagos-Ibadan Train Service and the Warri-Itakpe Train Service (WITS) by end of October 2023,” Nigerian Railway Corporation announced.
