The Minister for Transportation Rotimi Amaechi has stated
that he has no regret siting the $50 million (N18bn) Transport University in
President Buhari's village, Daura in Katsina state.
Amaechi who spoke at the groundbreaking ceremony of the
university which will be built on 413 hectares donated by the Katsina state
government on Monday December 2, stated that Daura deserves the project because
it is in Nigeria.
”When we sited the factory at Kajola, there was no noise,
nobody debated about it, nobody abused us for it unlike the site for the
University.
”Daura is in Nigeria, it is not in any other part of the
world. It is not in Niger Republic, Biafra or Mali, it is in Nigeria. So, what
is wrong in siting the University of transportation in Daura?
”I have no regret siting this university where I have sited
it, it is not because I want to get any gain,” Amaechi said.
”It is my attempt at responding to the question of how to
maintain and manage all the infrastructure we are building and realised that
education is key.
”I engaged the companies, the first engagement was when they
were constructing Lagos-Ibadan. They were not so keen at spending their funds
to build a university for Nigeria until I refused to sign the contract for the
Lagos to Ibadan railway.
”I insisted that I will only sign if three things were done.
The first thing is to take our children to China and train them by giving them
first degree in railway technology.
”Today as I speak, 60 of our children are in their second
year and we thank CCECC and 90 are on their way to China this week, making it
150. The second is that, if we must sign the purchase of locomotives in China,
they must build a factory were we can construct coaches, locomotives and wagon
and today at Kajola that factory is being constructed.
”Finally, I insisted on the University of Transportation and
today we are here for the ground breaking of the University and for all we are
grateful to CCECC and the Chinese government.”
