NRC Tenders Formal Apology After Staff Brutalize UI Lecturer at Moniya; Two Arrested as Police Hunt Fleeing Locomotive Driver

The Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) is currently in damage-control mode following a violent “State of Harmony” breach at the Obafemi Awolowo Railway Station in Moniya, Ibadan. On Monday, March 9, 2026, the corporation confirmed it is conducting an intensive internal probe into the brutal assault of Dr. Mikail Abdulsalam, a respected lecturer from the University of Ibadan, by its personnel.

The incident, which occurred last Wednesday, transformed a simple sibling send-off into a scene of public humiliation. Dr. Abdulsalam was reportedly set upon by a group of railway workers immediately after pulling over to drop his sister off for her Lagos-bound journey. According to eyewitness accounts, the staff members bypassed standard ticketing or parking queries and resorted to physical violence, leaving the academic with visible injuries before the Moniya Police Division could intervene.

In a move to “flip the script” on the growing public outrage, top NRC management officials visited the lecturer over the weekend to personally hand over a letter of sincere regret. Signed by the District Manager, Naomi Itajobi, the letter took full responsibility for the “distressing and unwarranted” actions of their employee, Mr. Tomisin Asiye, a locomotive driver who is currently on the run. While two other staff members remain in police custody, the NRC has promised that Asiye and his accomplices will face the full weight of the corporation’s disciplinary code.

The University of Ibadan community remains on edge, with senior professors warning that the safety of citizens at public infrastructure must be guaranteed. As the police intensify their search for the fleeing driver, the NRC has vowed to use this “painful lesson” to retrain its frontline staff, ensuring that the Moniya station becomes a place of service rather than a theater of aggression.