Atiku’s Aide Challenges Umahi Over ₦$ Billions? Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway Project

Paul Ibe, media aide to former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, has questioned the planning, funding and implementation of the 750-kilometre Lagos-Calabar coastal highway project, calling on the Federal Government to provide detailed information about its execution.

Ibe’s comments followed a disclosure by the Minister of Works, David Umahi, that the highway was being designed and costed in sections rather than through a single, comprehensive process covering the entire route.

Reacting in a statement posted on X, Ibe questioned why construction had commenced without a unified engineering design for the full length of the project. He clarified that his concern was not the use of different designs for separate sections, but whether the government had an overall plan, reliable financing arrangements and a clearly defined completion timeline.

According to Bush Radio Academy, Ibe urged the Federal Government to disclose the project’s current estimated cost, the amount of money already committed and disbursed, and the expected date of completion.

He also called on the Ministry of Works to publish the coordinated route plan, sectional engineering designs and costs, procurement records, environmental approvals, compensation obligations and financing arrangements.

The ADC chieftain’s aide further raised concerns about the reported commencement of construction under provisional environmental approval while environmental assessments were still being conducted section by section.

Ibe argued that Nigerians deserved transparency and a comprehensive explanation of how the project was being planned, financed and implemented, given its scale and the public resources involved.

He maintained that the government should not present the coastal highway as a single major achievement while relying on sectional explanations whenever questions arise about its overall cost, planning and progress.

“Nigerians are not asking every kilometre to look alike. We are asking the government’s explanations to add up,” he stated.

He added, “Public money deserves a clear plan not a moving target.”

The comments have intensified scrutiny of the Lagos-Calabar coastal highway, with Ibe insisting that the government should provide verifiable details about the project’s financial commitments, environmental compliance, construction arrangements and delivery schedule.