The Lagos-Calabar coastal highway project has attracted different feelings from Nigerians of all layers.
The presidential candidate of People’s Democratic Party in the 2023 election and main opposition leader Atiku Abubakar, described the project as a compensation and thank you by President Bola Tinubu to his business allies, Gilbert Chaguory’s Hitech for the role allegedly played in the 2023 general election that brought him to power.
Atiku in his numerous criticisms of the Lagos-Calabar coastal road project, challenged President Tinubu to disclose the full cost of the highway project even as he accused him of executing the project based on personal interest.
Atiku maintained that the Tinubu administration could not continue to keep silent on how much of public funds would be spent on the project at a time Nigeria was still facing dire economic challenges.
The former vice president had through his media adviser, Paul Ibe, questioned the decision to award the coastal road contract to Chagoury’s Hitech without competitive bidding.
He had also wondered why the Federal Government released N1.06 trillion for the pilot phase or six percent of the project, which begins at Eko Atlantic and was expected to terminate at the Lekki Deep Sea Port.
According to the specification, the 700-kilometre coastal highway project is designed to connect Lagos to Cross River, passing through the coastal states of Ogun, Ondo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, and Akwa Ibom, before culminating in Cross River.
The first phase of the project that will run through the nine coastal states is the 47.47km section, beginning from Victoria Island. It has five lanes on each side of the dual carriageway and a train track in the middle.
Starting from Ahmadu Bello Way, Victoria Island in Lagos, the coastal road would have two spurs that would link up with Northern Nigeria to further integrate the North and South in terms of movement of people, goods and services. Government says part of the funding will be sourced by Hitech, the contractors.
“Adeodun is urging authorities to conduct thorough environmental and social impact assessments before tearing down coastal businesses for the superhighway”
Atiku was not alone in criticizing the huge amount to be spent on the project at a time the country is believed to be financially crippled.
A lawyer and social critic, Silva Emeka described the action by the government as the height of insensitivity.
He said, “The President Tinubu administration has continued to prove to Nigerians that the several hardships the people are passing through does not mean anything to him. Projects are good, nobody is condemning that but the big question is: is man made for project or project made for man? Nigerians barely feed once a day, the inflation is biting harder, go to the market and see how prices of goods have skyrocketed. The ordinary Nigerians according to our politicians are now eating from the dustbins and yet the government is embarking on such a money gulping project. What is expected of our government is to introduce policies that will speedily cushion the effects of economic hardship not awarding contracts to themselves and their business allies.
“There are roads that will enhance our economy begging for repair but they have not attracted the government’s attention. The Federal Government is telling us that this project was to be executed by both former Presidents Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari. Since they didn’t execute it, did it hinder any economic growth? The East-West road, Enugu-Port Harcourt road, Kogi-Edo road and several others are there as death traps, the government did not see any urgency in rehabilitating them but because the Chaguory is involved, they awarded it with the speed of light. What is the secret of awarding this contract now when our country is bleeding and our economy is at ground zero? Simple logic shows that it is based on personal interest, just to pay back the business allies that contributed immensely in the victory of 2023 polls.”
“The former vice president has challenged the government to disclose how much the contract is worth but rather than do that, they resulted in abusing him and his aides. That means something is hidden because if there are no shady deals, the details would be made public. Another striking point is the awarding of the contract without advertising the job. Is it what procurement law says? In fact, most policies of this government are more anti-people and it’s not the way out of this economic mess. They should channel their policies to pulling the people out of the hardship and not otherwise,” he said.
Property owners seek talks with FG
For fear of losing his property and the eventual throwing of numerous Nigerians into the labour market, a prominent Nigerian businessman and the Group Chief Executive Officer of Landmark Group, Paul Onwuanibe, called on the Nigerian government to return the construction of the coastal road to the original alignment that was planned for it before it was moved to the path of Landmark beachfront.
The Lagos State government had earlier issued a 7-day evacuation notice and demolition notice to Landmark Beach Resort, saying that the property was in the way of a 700 kilometre Coastal road that will link Lagos to Calabar.
In a recent interview with the media, Landmark’s CEO, Onwuanibe disclosed that in the original plans for the coastal road, the road was meant to start from a different path – Water Corporation Drive- before it was changed to pass through Landmark Beach Resort.
He urged the government to go back to the original alignment, as the original plan will not only save businesses that will be destroyed as a result of the revised plan, but also save money and manpower for the government.
“The original alignment of the coastal road was Water Corporation Road. I mean, you had the picture on your screen, and it actually showed quite clearly the Water Corporation Road, the two feed-in lanes, and then the medium that was meant to house it. Then there’s Landmark, and there’s the beach, and there’s the sea. The alignment was changed from Water Corporation Road to run, so instead of it running on the land side of Landmark, it’s going to run on the beach side of Landmark.
“So, that’s where this issue came up, it’s that the alignment was changed. Our request is simply to go back to the original alignment, nothing wrong with it. What’s going to happen is that it goes back to the Water Corporation, and then it’s a win-win for everyone. They’re seeking to put it on the beachfront, and just immediately after Landmark, it turns back and goes back to the original alignment.
Onwuanibe, 58, was told in a government letter that his Landmark Beach resort – a top-tier destination visited, he says, by about a million local and foreign visitors last year – had to be removed as it “falls within the right of way” of a planned 700-kilometer (435-mile) coastal highway designed to link the former capital city to Calabar, a port city near the border with Cameroon.
Onwuanibe told journalists he had obtained the land in 2007 before the plans for the coastal highway were drawn up, and felt a mix of emotions after receiving the demolition order, which also urged him to file compensation claims.
“One was amazement, second was concern and the third one was, ‘is this real or is this an April Fools’ (Day prank in) advance?’”
Onwuanibe leads Landmark Group, a real estate developer and a key player in Nigeria’s tourism and hospitality industries.
The group’s leisure beach, listed among Nigeria’s best seven beaches in 2023 by the Lonely Planet travel guide, is a lucrative part of the 13-hectare mixed-use Landmark site along the Atlantic Ocean beachfront in Lagos’s affluent Victoria Island area.
The beach resort and other sections of the Landmark site on the coastal right of way are billed to be pulled down.
Valued at over $200 million, according to Onwuanibe, the Landmark site is home to over 80 businesses and provides more than 4,000 direct jobs. It also generates over N2 billion ($1.5 million) in annual tax revenue, the company said.
Approval for the new coastal road was given on February 27 by the federal authorities, according to presidential aide Temitope Ajayi.
He said on X that the superhighway, “when completed, will enter the world record books among iconic coastal routes like the Wild Atlantic Highway in Ireland and the Pacific Coastal Highway in the United States.”
The superhighway will run through a total of nine coastal states in Nigeria, Ajayi added, and will have “five lanes on each side of the dual carriageway and a train track in the middle,” as well as spurs linking up with northern Nigeria.
However, environmentalists say that, while the coastal road project would bolster the economy, it also poses environmental problems.
“It’s undeniable that the road construction will bring about significant impacts such as the destruction of wetlands, forests, and various habitats,” said Lagos-based water and environment consultant Similade Adeodun.
“Activities like sand filling and dredging along the coastal areas also raise concerns,” he told journalists.
Adeodun is urging authorities to conduct thorough environmental and social impact assessments before tearing down coastal businesses for the superhighway.
“For Landmark Beach, which already generates significant revenue from eco-tourism, the government should explore robust measures to preserve the beach or consider alternative routes with fewer economic and ecological consequences.
“I understand that the original right of way for the road did not pass through Landmark Beach. Perhaps, revisiting the routes to ensure minimal environmental damage and preserve local businesses should be strongly considered,” he added.
No compensation for property without permit after demolition – LASG
However, the Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development in Lagos State, Olumide Oluyinka, has said only properties with planning approvals will be compensated for demolition in the construction of the Lagos-calabar coastal road.
He disclosed this at the Association of the Real Estate Agents in Nigeria summit held in Lagos on Tuesday.
He said, “We are clearing the coastal road, and some houses would be affected, if you do not have planning permit approval, you cannot be compensated.”
Speaking on the amount of properties to be demolished, the commissioner said it was difficult to determine the number of properties.
He added, “All the properties to be demolished are all the properties on the road way, because they have been duly informed.
“The owner of properties with title would be compensated, but owners of properties without any approval, it is a pity, and they will not be compensated.”
Oluyinka noted that the owners of these properties have been informed, and the next stage is the compensation stage.
He noted, “We have informed them, the next stage, for those that are due for compensation, is to write to them officially to let them know the value of what they would be compensated with.”
Officials from the Lagos State Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, led by the commissioner, Toke Benson-Awoyinka, had recently met and sought the understanding of residents of the Iru area of the state, particularly those that would be affected by the ongoing Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road project by the Federal Government.
Awoyinka, at the meeting held at the palace of the paramount traditional ruler of Iru Land, Oba Abdulwasiu Abisogun II, the Oniru of Iru land, said the government would look into how to get timely compensation for affected persons “because the Lagos State Government will not leave the community members to bear any burden that comes with this project alone.”
Umahi defends project, says no personal interest
Meanwhile, the Federal Government on Thursday doused the raging controversy over the 700-kilometre Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway.
The Minister of Works, David Umahi, insisted that due process was followed in the award of the contract to Hitech Construction Company without going through a public tender system.
Umahi stated that competence and track record, especially given that Hi-tech was instrumental to the reclamation work on the beach in Lagos, were some of the reasons the company was picked.
Umahi argued that if the project was initiated by former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration and reviewed by the Muhammadu Buhari administration, he wondered what personal interests they were pushing, since Tinubu was being accused of pursuing a personal interest.
“The Coastal Road Project should, in the first instance, be halted and subjected to due process, including competitive bidding as required by the law”
He argued that Jonathan put the cost at about $12 billion, but was renegotiated by Buhari to around $11.1 billion.
He pointed out that one way to tackle inflation was to look at investment in infrastructure, stressing that that was exactly what the president was doing. “So there’s no personal interest associated with that,” he explained.
On whether the project couldn’t have started from Calabar, rather than Lagos where it is likely to cause disruption to the Landmark Beach project, the minister explained that was the original plan.
“We didn’t call it Calabar-Lagos-Coastal Road. You called it Lagos-Calabar-Coastal Road, which means that there is a zero point,” he added.
He emphasized that Chagoury’s Hitech was picked because of its capacity, insisting that there’s a part of the procurement law that allows the government to pick contractors based on skills, rather than least cost.
He argued that handing over the project to Hitech remains an advantage to Nigeria because not only did they stop the flooding along the axis, they also reclaimed a lot of land and have turned it to another Dubai.
The minister also disputed the figures churned out by Atiku, maintaining that the basis for his analysis was wrong and that it was about N4.329 billion per kilometre.
According to the minister, aside the Lagos axis of the project, other axes that criss-cross the other states were yet to be ‘costed’
Umahi explained that nobody can talk about the commercial integrity of a project without talking about its technical integrity. “That’s the first thing you must consider, ability to do the job,” he observed.
He said that by law, the Federal Government owns 250 metres of shorelines, stressing that because the government was taking only just 50 metres, all Landmark Group’s facilities were still intact.
“His facilities are all intact because we reduced the corridor to 50 metres. There’s no permanent structure other than a few shanties along that route. No single job will be lost because of this,” he assured.
He explained that although the land belongs to the Federal Government, because of the investment there, it decided to take just 50 metres out of the 250 metres that it ordinarily has a right to.
Doherty writes Akpabio, Abbas, calls for suspension of project
Meanwhile, an opposition politician in Lagos State, Funsho Doherty has joined the call for a probe into the award of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road project to Hi-Tech Construction Ltd.
Doherty, in a letter addressed to the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, called for a probe into the award of the contract.
The letter, dated April 11, said the award of the contract to Hi-Tech Construction Ltd, a company owned by President Tinubu’s friend, Gilbert Chagoury, violated the Public Procurement Act, 2007.
He stated that the process of awarding the contract without competitive bids was a violation of the law.
Doherty, who contested the Lagos State Governorship Election in 2023, asked the two chambers of the National Assembly to launch a probe.
“I therefore hereby call on the National Assembly, in its capacity as representatives of the people and, in exercise of its powers and responsibilities of oversight, to immediately commence an investigation into this project, the FMW and the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP),” he said.
In addition, Doherty called for the suspension of the project pending the review of the contract.
“The Coastal Road Project should, in the first instance, be halted and subjected to due process, including competitive bidding as required by the law.
“If offences under the PPA or code of conduct are established in the course of your investigations, we expect that they will be prosecuted and that the consequences provided in the law will be applied to serve as a deterrent,” he said.
