Beginning the morning witnessed the stage-setting for President Bola Tinubu’s long-awaited arrival this Thursday. His presence is ultimately to savour the pleasure of an endeavour he started 22 years ago which is happening through his task of commissioning the Lagos Rail Mass Transit (LRMT) Red Line.

It was him as the Lagos State Governor in 2002 who signed the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA) bill. Back then at the start of the 21st century, the city and Nigeria as a whole was trying its utmost best to reconnect with the civil world after several years under military tyranny. 

And to begin the reconnection was to have all the necessary infrastructure in place, especially a multimodal transportation system including buses, ferries and then the train to move around what is going to become a massively populated megacity in the future. 

Keeping a date with this is what 29 February has been destined for – to await the arrival of Mr Tinubu at the Ikeja Train Station, the chosen venue for launching the second LRMT because already Lagosians have the Blue Line which the current state chief executive and close ally, Governor Babajide Sanwo-olu opened up to Marina and Mile 2 residents in September 2023.

ALSO READ: Train bell dings towards March when Lagosians can hop on the Red Line Rail

So, five months later, it is his turn to cut the colourful ribbon, a ritual which marks completing an enviable milestone of being the only Nigerian city possessing its rail infrastructure. Before he got to cutting the ribbon, President Tinubu gave a speech to the large gathering at the station.

I am very happy indeed that today is a day to remember in Nigeria’s infrastructural history, particularly Lagos, the center of excellence. Today is evidence that it is good to dream, and it is a serious validation of democracy as a form of government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

When you put people at the center of your vision and planning, you will realize the value of democracy.

Twenty-five years ago, I was elected to lead Nigeria’s most populous state. From the very beginning, my team and I toiled day and night with a very bare cupboard and amidst pervasive deficiency to implement a developmental vision that would transform Lagos into an economic powerhouse. Today, we are realizing that dream.

The momentum of greatness we kickstarted a quarter of a century ago has become unstoppable progress. It is not a crime to dream and dream big. Just stay focused and make development a central focus.

Ever since the Blue Line launched into service, Lagos has received several study groups from other Nigerian states including a delegation from the federal rail authority – they all came to either discover a path to starting from the ground up or have come to learn something they can tweak for their existing infrastructure. 

When the 27 kilometres Red Line enters full service in a few weeks, it is expected that it would do this traversing eight stations, precisely from Agbado close to Ogun state down to Oyingbo near the Lagos island.

Up to 500,000 riders will be onboarded daily, off to and back from their destinations. But there will be more rail lines to commission covering other areas including the upscale Eti-Osa district, so this might not be the last of President Tinubu that Lagos has seen.

Ayodele Johnson

Ayodelé is a Lagos-based journalist and the Content and Editorial Coordinator at Meiza. All around the megacity, I am steering diverse lifestyle magazine audiences with ingenious hacks and insights that spur fast, informed decisions in their busy lives.