By Fidelis Ugbomeh
As Nigerian Railway Corporation, (NRC) continues to explore alternative sources of revenue to complement its core mandate of provision/maintenance of rail service/rolling stocks, managing director of Railway Property Management Company Limited (RPMCL), Mr. Timothy Zalanga, has said that old structures commercialised within railway compounds in the country were authorised by management of the corporation in line with the act establishing the company.
This is coming on the heels of recent calls on the management of the corporation by president of Legacy museum, Mr. Taiwo Olaniyi, to preserve most of the old structures that are located in various railway compounds across the country from being either demolished or outrightly remodelled for purpose of commercialisation.
While managing director of NRC, Dr. Kayode Opeifa, advised management of the museum to consider production of a comprehensive documentary detailing all railway monuments, especially residential and railway station buildings, for reference purposes, Zalanga, in a separate interview, said that RPMCL has never leased land or demolished/remodelled structures identified to serve as monuments in the railway compounds, since its establishment.
He pointed out that it falls within the jurisdiction of management of NRC to release all non-operational land and properties to RPMCL for commercialisation as stipulated by the act establishing the company.
The RPMCL boss noted that. for instance. the structure currently occupied by “Legacy Museum” and the one opposite it inside the railway compound in Lagos was donated by the management of Nigerian Railway Corporation for exhibition of railway relics and artifacts and has since continued to serve that purpose.
“Railway Property Management Company Limited as a subsidiary of Nigerian Railway Corporation is mandated to commercialise all non operational land and landed properties of the corporation.
“In doing so, the company is guided by its processes and procedures, which usually requires the NRC to release such properties before they are commercialised.
“If, in any case, any structure is termed as a monument, it cannot be released by NRC for commercialisation and for now I am not aware of any structure that was demolished/remodelled or leased out that was termed a monument,” Zalanga averred.
He explained further that, in line with the act establishing RPMCL, the old wooden railway training school opposite the recreation club and railway quarters along Murtala Muhammed Way, in Lagos, were demolished and rebuilt as railway guest house and Paradise Events Centre, respectively, while an abandoned railway structure hitherto inhabited by squatters at Marine Beach, Apapa, in Lagos, has since been converted to a shopping complex/apartment for commercial purposes.
According to Zalanga other giant strides recorded by the company include construction of ultramodern market by Cityscape properties, along Civic Centre Road, Kano, and provision of lock-up shops at railway station, Kaduna, as well as construction of police station at Bola Ahmed Tinubu railway station, Apapa for provision of security.
He stated further that all the aforementioned structures with exception of the police station have been commercialised and handed over to private organisations to manage based on terms of agreement with the company and NRC while the station has been handed over to railway police.
Olaniyi had during a recent visit to the railway corporation’s helmsman advised that old structures in the railway compounds should be preserved and maintained as monuments so as to offer special opportunities for study or research by students and other interest groups.
He said that students from University of Lagos and other institutions of higher learning within Lagos state visited the museum to learn about architectural designs many of which are still preserved in their colonial state.
A former railway locomotive engine driver, Mr. Kehinde Oloko also supported preservation of old structures saying, some near dormant structures like loco workshops/loco running sheds in some districts of the corporation should be commercialised by RPMCL so as not to serve as safe havens for criminals and kidnappers to launch their attacks on innocent people.