NRC cracks down on ticket racketeers after TheCable’s investigation, suspends nine officials

The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) says nine of its officials were involved in ticket racketeering at the Ibadan railway station. 

The development is coming just hours after TheCable’s investigation on the Lagos-Ibadan train service. 

TheCable had exposed some staff members of the NRC who engaged in fraudulent dealings such as collecting cash from passengers without remitting the funds to official coffers and smuggling of passengers into trains. 

Speaking to journalists at the Ibadan train station over the allegations presented in the investigation, Fidet Okhiria, managing director of NRC, said nine members of staff involved in ticket racketeering have been suspended.

“It is an offence to carry an intending passenger to enter the train without having a ticket,” Okhiria said.

Okhiria added that adequate measures have been put in place to prevent people without tickets from gaining access to the departure lounge enroute boarding the train.

“We have made that arrangement and we have staff members to check the tickets before they get to the departure hall and also check the tickets before they can get to the platforms to board the train,” he said. 

“I just came here to remind them that anybody caught will not be spared and to ensure that we do the right thing at the right time.”

Nigerians have called for the e-ticketing system to be integrated as one solution to improving the services of the NRC.