The Minister of Transportation Chibuike Amaechi has pledged to complete all ongoing rail projects around the country and extend rail lines to other parts of the country.
Amaechi made the pledge during his first day in office as minister shortly after his swearing-in by President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja on Wednesday.
He said he would resume work fully on November 17 when the new Permanent Secretary Sabiu Zakari, would equally assume duty at the ministry.
The minister said his meeting with the Permanent Secretary and directors on November 17 would begin by looking at the budget and its level of implementation.
He said the meeting would be necessary to chart a new course towards completing all ongoing projects, especially the rail and extending it to other parts of the country.
Amaechi, however, called for cooperation from all parastatals and agencies of the ministry and the Aviation sector.
He promised to ensure a smooth working relationship with the Minister of State for Aviation for the development of the sector as well as meeting the expectations of Nigerians.
The minister also urged the staff to always play by the rules.
“I believe in principles of discharging my duties,” he said. “We are interested in completing all ongoing rail projects around the country because we don’t want to disappoint Nigerians.
“It is important that we realise that we have a mandate to deliver on our promises and there is competition among the ministers to deliver and we don’t want to take last.”
In his speech, the Minister of State for Aviation Hadi Sirika, said it was an era of new thinking for the actualisation of the change agenda of the Federal Government.
Sirika added that the era of talking tough without acting was over, stressing that whatever was said was what would be done.
He assured that the Buhari administration would deliver on its promises, adding that the government was aware of the high hopes and expectations of Nigerians.
Sirika pledged to ensure a harmonious working relationship with the Minister of Transportation to achieve results in the implementation of policies and programmes.
Also, the Permanent Secretary, who was appointed by the President on Tuesday, expressed optimism that the new ministers would deliver on the visions and missions of the change agenda of the government.
Zakari pledged to give maximum cooperation to the new ministers to assist them in the discharge of their duties effectively.
-PT
