 Thank you for staying with us. You're still on the breakfast on plus TV Africa and now it's time for a hot topic Well, this one is NRC yet to recover from government's previous transport face lash And when we're talking about the energy we're talking about Nigerian railway cooperation now as we all know the Federal government has said that they are slashing about 50% of bus fares for travelers in this Utah season And as well as the railway then obviously they have zero prices on this one But however we're hearing that even from the last administration the previous one that we've seen The NRC has not been able to recover from it so far We have here someone who is going to help us just give an overview of everything How it has been fair out how they've been faring so far and where we are now and if this is even the right initiative At this moment. So good morning, sir. Thank you for joining us. Welcome to the program Good morning. Your name. Okay. Sorry. I'm gonna take your name right now Where we're with comrade Francis Igbo-Quey. He's a secretary general the Nigerian Union of railway workers. Good morning, mr. Francis Thank you for joining us. Okay, so my first question right now is how was it in the last time? You guys have had this before and here we are again the Nigerian government is saying Zero prices for travelers in this Utah season from yesterday to the 4th of January But I want to know how it happened the last time and what the effect was on your corporation He gave such gesture said directives to the NRC And of course NRC is really owned by the government. I mean so directives come they have not shown that to comply They did that but the You know, it's like your father or your parents sending you to an error or for an obligation At the end of the day, they have to they are supposed to cushion the effect of giving out these services for free Useful use of that rolling stocks. We are so some people in the in the system So this was supposed to be cushioned by some you know effort from the government So that the company or the corporation will not feel it some of that didn't happen We are into another Form of gesture from the government, which must be complied to But the point is that the government should take responsibility the consequences of giving something free How do how are they supposed to do that? Where or diesel is the biggest problem in the corporation So if the government comes, okay, every fuel off where you're going to use from now to the next two three months We're going to give you free that that that would be that would be most appreciative Because you know the cost of fuel diesel everything is gone out. So last time the effect is not Steady and we're into it again, but they have to comply because this is a government owned Parasita, so we are not saying no to what the Instruction of the government what we're saying is that government should remember that a lot has gone out of us Out of the system. Therefore, they have to do something even if they don't want to be truthful. That can be more Subs But it's a location. It's okay Since you are buying diesel you are doing this use this to cushion the effect So that is just you saying there was no budgetary provisions for this at all I'm not saying there's no budgetary Also, what I'm saying is that a budget has been made There's a bigger responsibility that was not budgeted into so in order to cushion the effect you have to do a bigger So there was nothing given to your corporation to say, okay because you're slashing the price a lot because people are going to travel for free so You get this are you saying that there was no money allocated to you for this For now We're still on that last one. Yes, we even get to this one at that time I was there was no and the the corporation is suffering it You know, of course, you know, it's a very big corporation So whatever you do affects the corporation and moreover, it is a corporation that has been abandoned for a very long time It's just trying to start off again And at the point of trying to even push the security problem came on But you know, so it's like the retrogression coming back to square one But because you have men and women who knows their owners in terms of men, you can call in ways themselves They know what to do and they started all afresh. So it is not that we will obey But coming to give us this type of results responsibility again without Something to as a buffer will not or go but when you also expected to remit to maybe the federation Do you have a target that you you are expected to remit to the federation account every month or every quarter? I think you the issue of target comes in if all the All the all the parameters are you know covered or settled now. We don't have we don't have enough trains We are not all over the country. What I mean that is not an integrated Places where you get in there places that there are people that will die in that you have that same train Or if you use it for example, they need from this one legos be me as a bar over a On each other's All is not we are trying our best all is not we're like why ask the question is the fact that okay If for instance, they're expecting you to give a hundred million every month Maybe the government will not give you money, but they will say for this two three months Do not we're not expecting you to remit a million. Maybe give us 50 million something like that There are so many ways to cushion the effect. Yes The last time I don't think but for this one we had you know, I think two days ago the announcement was but it was 24th And then they said they are going to their meeting with the transport the minister And so we expect that we do the Within the period of theater day between the government and the minister, of course the same government Maybe something like that. Well, this gets me, you know, because when the minister the minister was talking Delia like it was talking He said all the relevant stakeholders have been met Including even the new RTW, which is not Really directly connected to the to the government as private sector as it is So who are these relevant stakeholders that were met if NRC was not brought to the table and told this is what you're going to get because we are you we are expecting you to Slash the prizes and all that are you telling me that That information and that discussion was not hard before the announcement was made The the you know the announcement just came. Yes Yes, so for us, but of course, you know, we didn't we didn't we didn't the we didn't the government And then the management probably the lab met. Okay, they are talking to them to the minister But on the side of the union we When the moon of we just had the announcement and don't forget Fourth of January this gesture will be over. Yes. So it's not even something that is enduring. It's not sustainable I was gonna ask that do you think before we get see it being sustainable first? The initiative do you think it's a very good initiative for Nigerians right now? Especially with we've seen in the National Daily's saying there's low turnout for this because there's no money There's no cash. So are people even able to access? This initiative that the government has put in place just to you know, give them as a buffer palliative For the whole cash crunch the fuel hike and all of that that we're experiencing right now Well, normally in Africa if anybody does anything to you the next thing is to say, thank you So in our usual way we appreciate the government but for me like you have just said, there's no money If I want to travel to my village now for Christmas, I have a family of about six Of course traveling is not there. If I want to travel I have my mother in the village I have all course I have these I have not going to go to villages Uncle so I come to see I said So there's no money in the pocket of Nigerian especially workers particularly if you work as a real worker Because they are the least paid people in the system go and do your verification. So you Even the gesture from the report people are not it's not it's not a rush People are no rushing. Yes, because you must have some money in the pocket before pulling a free ride Right, whatever you are going to it is not why you go to village There is a matter now, at least there should be hot water to give that is the old men and women in the village I give them milk give them both of that But you can't afford that now because there's no money the party the government said they are giving people they stopped They don't spend September the team no more Do you understand? So there's no money anywhere. So no matter how feel Something is as long as it has to move from one place to the other And of course this period is a period that people goes to village So they will not go to the way from January is except this December And if you go to if you go to village in December, people are not most people are not going for a farm fair There are projects to be embarked upon. There is their worms program or joy that enables you to You know If it's not there you have to sit back because you can notice somewhere in Lagos or in Abuja or Potac or for 12 calendar months making a year coming to December you came and then you'll be So the best is for you to avoid traveling So there's no money in the pocket of people So even the gesture fine is okay, but it's a temporary Something I would have respected the government. It's okay. If we're not is That Now as we're wrapping up because we're out of time Let me just have you respond to this because we have the opportunity a rare opportunity to have you in the studio now There's this talk about real-wave work as being Doing what they call racket tearing, you know, you get there You're selling tickets. You're finding short racket tearing. Let me call it that so how will you respond to these? Let me use the word Agbeiro in the railway system Well, you should also remember that the ticketing something Was and he still outsourced to a company Don't understand. It is not real way that is directly handling the ticketing something So if if if railway is handling it, we can talk authoritatively, but it is a different Body that you know is doing that so and of course They say in every 12, there must be a Judas. You don't rule out any Anything within the system particularly we have to play hungry. We are not justifying that but The companies handling this ticketing thing should be in the best position to say What they are doing If it's direct railway, we can be authoritative I can go into town and say but again, I want to also use this opportunity This has brought the importance of railway to the full and the workers a worker a driver of a train goes with our 20 18 coaches. Yes, it's human beings You know, but the loggies and all the rest and if you they tell you how much is paid you Having such responsibility so the average how much how much how much are you paid? My sister To do something the present the former president approved my 25% salary Housemaid for the workers up tonight has not been So give us a range maybe from this amount to this amount Let's just have an idea because we need this information if we're going to speak to the government Are you paid minimum wage at least we paid minimum wage, but the good workers at the least in their in the salary structure and it was done during the military time the Importance of All the professionals that are really assembled they undermine the the former sector that really also will enhance They undermine the development and everything really it will symbolize it and then Place them on the newest salary structure, which is which is which is crime against humanity So we are calling on going to do something because we Okay, well would like to thank you there's some questions will ask you behind camera anyway So that we can be able to fight this course, but this is where we have to drop it. Mr. Igbo Kway Thank you so much for coming on the program this morning. Thank you, sir Okay, we've been talking with comrade Francis Igbo Kway secretary general the Niger union of railway Workers will take a short break and when we return it'll be time for our second hot topic still with us