The re-appointment of Hon Rotimi Amaechi as Minister of Transportation and Senator Gbemi Saraki as the Minister of State has been described by railway watchdog African Railway Roundtable (ARR) as “a continuation of a golden age for Nigerian railways.”

“Hon Amaechi is the transformational leader who under President Muhammadu Buhari changed the face of Nigerian railways from old to new, from near analogue to digital and from uncompleted to completed lines across the country. The return of the minister should be celebrated by all lovers of railway and affordable transportation in Nigeria,” the group said in a statement signed by its Director, Olawale Rasheed.

ARR, a pan-African rail development advocacy group said: “A combination of Hon Amaechi with Senator Gbemi Saraki as Minister of State will further propel rail development in Nigeria while also opening up the nation to international patronage.

“We congratulate Nigerians on the continuity decision of President Buhari in the railway sector. We know the duo of Amaechi and Senator Gbemi. This is a continuation of a golden age. While Amaechi is both passionate and pushful, he will find in Senator Saraki a cerebral, hardworking and vastly experience public official.”

ARR charged the new ministers to forge ahead without relenting on the implementation of the railway modernisation plan and agenda, adding: “Nigeria should be a pacesetter for Africa.”

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