Against mounting criticism from members of the political camp of his ex-godfather, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, Governor Umar Abdullahi Ganduje has commenced the process of developing a world-class light rail system for the over 1,000-years-old city of Kano.
The move is one of the conscious initiatives of the Ganduje administration to transform the ancient city from its current antiquity profile to a mega city that can compete with other cities of the world.
Although it has been an age-long desire of most residents of the state to have Kano turn into a mega city that will be equipped with global-rated infrastructure –good network of roads, modern railway and airport facility, efficient communication tool, well-managed waste and sewage system – Governor Ganduje will go down in history as the first political leader in the state to give practical expression to the aspiration of the residents in this regard.
The inauguration of an administrative committee for the Kano Metropolitan Light Rail Project, under the chairmanship of Umar Tofa, a distinguished business leader, has scaled up the hope of most residents to have a modern urban railway system in place in the state.
While inaugurating the committee at the Executive Council Chamber of the Kano State government, Thursday, Governor Ganduje disclosed that his administration was seeking about $1.85bn loan facility from the Bank of China, China Import and Export Bank, and China Development Bank to finance the project.
He said 85 percent of the contract sum would be sourced from foreign loan while the balance of 15 percent would be sourced locally, and that the repayment period was not more than 15 years. He added that the rail, with a total length of about 73 km, will crisscross Kano metropolitan and would be executed in four phases.
“We have computed what we are generating from the state IGR and we know that we can pay back the loan facility and the interest within the stipulated period. The repayment is expected to start after the project is completed and starts operating, when the residents of the state will start enjoying the rail service and the revenue will start flowing in. And from the calculation of the experts, the revenue flow will be able cover the loan payment, and the project will eventually become a revenue-earning asset to the state,” Ganduje explained.
“So for those doubting Thomases and for those people trying to distract us by lying to the people, I mean the politically-ignorant people, they will now know that this project is a project that will make Kano a mega city,” he said.
The governor pointed out that the feasibility studies had shown the project was extremely viable while the contractor had expressed confidence in the ability of the state government to make the project a huge success.
He disclosed that Kano State and China Railway Company Group (CR18G-CRECG) had entered into an agreement in respect of the execution of the project, explaining that the only step remaining for the project to start was an approval letter from the Federal Government.
He informed that he led a delegation that met with the Chinese company at its headquarters and had extensive discussion on the projects during his recent visit to China, where CR18G-CRECG took the delegates to inspect some of its rail works in some parts of the country, especially at Tianjin City.
He said during the visit also, he met with officials of Bank of China, China Import and Export Bank and China Development Bank. He added that CDB would provide 85 percent of the project cost with 3 percent as interest, pointing out that if the loan was to be sourced from Nigerian banks, the interest rate would have been about 15 percent.
Governor Ganduje said the state metropolitan light rail initiative, as assured by experts, would be able to pay the loan through its expected generated revenue, appealing to the people of the state to critically look into the benefits of the project considering the population and plan to make the state a true mega city.
Umar Tofa, the committee head, described the project as a well-conceived idea aimed at achieving the objective of making Kano a mega city.
Tofa, who is also the district head of Tofa Local Government Area of the state, assured the governor and the citizens that the committee would work with integrity, professionalism, and sincerity to see that the project delivers value to the people of the state.
He noted that the loan option adopted by the governor in developing the project was the best option as no government can develop that kind of project with its internally generated revenue alone.
He advised people trying to gain political capital by spreading negative rumours about the project to desist as the project was very viable.
Adeola Ajakaiye
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