The Media Adviser to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has questioned the Federal Government’s planning, financing and accountability regarding the 750-kilometre Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway.
In a statement, the adviser expressed concern over remarks by the Minister of Works, David Umahi, that there was no single engineering design covering the entire highway, with designs and costs being developed section by section.
The adviser acknowledged that variations in terrain could require different engineering designs but questioned whether the President Bola Tinubu-led administration had a coordinated and financially credible plan for the entire project.
The statement also challenged Umahi’s rejection of a reported ₦15 trillion cost estimate, asking the minister to disclose the government’s current project estimate, the amount committed so far, available funding and the expected completion date for the entire highway.
It further raised questions over the minister’s explanation of the use of the terms “diversion” and “spur,” describing the clarification as another instance of the government providing explanations in instalments.
The adviser also expressed concern that construction commenced under provisional environmental approval while environmental assessments continued on a section-by-section basis.
Against this backdrop, the ADC representative called on the Works Minister to publish the coordinated route plan, sectional engineering designs and cost estimates, procurement records, environmental approvals, compensation obligations and financing arrangements for the project.
The statement argued that the Federal Government should provide comprehensive information about the highway rather than rely on sectional explanations whenever questions about its planning and implementation arise.
It maintained that Nigerians were not demanding identical engineering designs for every kilometre of the highway but were entitled to clear, consistent and verifiable information about the project’s scope, cost, funding and delivery timeline.
The adviser stressed that transparency was essential for a project of such scale, noting that public funds required proper accountability and a clearly defined implementation plan.
