The Federal Government has insisted that it would continue construction of the 700km Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway despite ongoing court cases filed by aggrieved persons against the project.
The Minister of Works, David Umahi, stated this at a press briefing on Thursday in Abuja while addressing serious concerns about the project’s procurement process that led to court proceedings by landowners.
“We are paying compensation. We are following the corridor’s right of way. We are following the corridor that is legally allowed for the Federal Government,” Umahi stated, while dismissing claims that the project lacked proper authorization.
“That is the beauty of democracy, and under the guise of democracy we have some fraudulent individuals who want to rip where they did not sow. We have not just one court case, we have over six, but we are equal to the task.
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“They want to socket their pipes and that is all that they are doing. We are paying compensation.
“And so, we don’t know what they are taking to court,” he said.
Umahi also defended the project’s cost, countering comparisons to other international projects. “I’ve had to run even the cost of the project at N4bn per kilometre. And yet, people still come to say, ‘oh, this number of lanes in Egypt is N1.8bn. And it is 300 kilometres,’” he said, criticizing those questioning the project without sufficient understanding.
The minister confirmed that all environmental social impact assessments had been completed and that the project was included in the 2023 supplementary appropriation.
“We have ESIA certificates on the project. That’s number one. Number two, was the project listed in the appropriation list? The project is in the 2023 supplementary appropriation. The project is ongoing. But the more you take us to court, the more we increase the price of work,” he noted.
Addressing those attempting to obstruct the project through legal means, Umahi said, “If they want to unduly benefit from the project by going to court, they are wasting their time. I fought many battles as governor of my state. And so, my name is David and I’m not afraid of bad people
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