Victor Okiche
President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of Dr. Kayode Opeifa, as the substantive Managing Director of the Nigeria Railway Corporation, NRC.
By his new appointment, Dr. Opeifa succeeded Ben Iloanusi who was acting managing director that replaced former Managing Director, Fidet Okhiria, who exited on October 18, 2024 after completion of his second four-year tenure.
Opeifa was a former Commissioner for Transportation in Lagos State, under the administration of Governor Babatunde Fashola, before he was subsequently appointed by President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration to help tackle the perennial, intractable Apapa gridlock.
He was also appointed vice- chairman, Presidential Task Team, PTT, by the former Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, charged with unbundling the ravaging traffic at the Lagos ports.
The appointment of Opeifa has been described as a well-deserved recognition of his exceptional contributions to the transportation sector in Lagos.
Stakeholders in the Transportation Sector have expressed confidence in his ability to revitalize the nation’s railway system, given his extensive expertise and track record of success.
The Transportation Correspondents Association of Nigeria, TCAN, which lauded President Bola Tinubu, for appointing Dr. Kayode Opeifa, as the Managing Director of the NRC, described the appointment as a right peg in the right hole.
The Chairman of the association, Yinka Aderibigbe, said the appointment would mark the beginning of better deals not only for the nation’s oldest public corporation but for the nation’s expanding railway sector.
The TCAN President, said Dr. Opeifa, has all that it takes to sustain the good works of his predecessors in the corporation and continue to push the narrative that would see all the nation’s state capitals connected by rail in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Tinubu’s administration.
Mr. Aderibigbe, maintained that the new Managing Director would ensure the delivery of new railway lines in line with the visions of the Tinubu administration, as he works at revamping the sustenance of Nigeria’s Railway Masterplan, which runs its full course this year.
He urged the new Managing Director to continue partnering with all critical stakeholders to achieve the mandate of Mr. President in repositioning the Nigerian Railway and ensuring that Nigerians get a better deal in public sector transportation where the railway plays a major role in logistics and passenger transportation across the country.