The Federal Government has ordered an immediate audit of all property belonging to the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC) within Apapa and its environs.

This is in preparation for the extension of the Apapa railway station to achieve the desired modernization of the ongoing Lagos-Ibadan rail project.

The Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi gave the directive on Tuesday during an inspection of the Apapa station shortly after a meeting of the Project Steering Committee held at the yard of the Chinese Civil Engineering Construction Company (CCECC)

“We have come to inspect what Apapa station looks like. We are not too impressed now. The station would be moved backward to the centre of the road since all the properties around here belong to the NRC,” Amaechi told newsmen at the station.

While stressing that the project must terminate at Apapa, the minister added that the contract for the relocation of water pipelines near the rails would be awarded later this week even as he noted that the gas pipelines within the Lagos axis had slowed down the pace of the work.

He added: “The task we have given the contractor now is because the contract is broken into two phases; the first phase is from Ebutte-metta to Ibadan. We believe they should be able to complete that.

“It is also expected that they should be able to complete Apapa to the Seaport but even if they are not able to complete it, we can go ahead and begin commercial activities from Ebute-Metta to Ibadan which is the original contract.”