The Minister of Works, David Umahi, has revealed that the Federal Government has engaged seven Senior Advocates of Nigeria to defend against legal actions filed by property owners affected by the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project.
Umahi made this disclosure on Sunday at a stakeholders’ meeting for the highway project, monitored by THE POINT.
The Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway is a 700-kilometer project designed to run from Victoria Island, Lagos, to Calabar, Cross River State. The first phase of the project was awarded to Hitech Construction Company Ltd.
Last year, Umahi stated that over 750 houses along the project’s path had been marked for demolition.
Property owners have since raised concerns, arguing that the government’s compensation does not adequately reflect their investments.
Addressing the issue, Umahi emphasized that the ministry had taken a balanced approach in managing affected properties.
“For the management of the properties, my ministry has done its best to listen to God, the president, and the people,” he said.
Speaking about a particular property still standing in the project’s right of way, he added:
“And so we just have only one building standing on the way. And I decided to come by myself to honor the owner of the building. I’ve had a personal meeting with him, just like I did with some of you, and we resolved amicably.
“And so, but what I directed is that let work continue and stop at his fence. Then work will also continue at the other side of his fence. So his house is standing in the middle of the road.
“So we have discussed, and I strongly believe that we understood ourselves. And that is the only property.”
Umahi acknowledged the ongoing litigation by some property owners and expressed confidence in the government’s legal position.
“We are aware that some people took us to court. But the beauty of democracy is that the court will interpret the instrument we use in doing what we did.
“And we will be very obedient to court, you know, decisions on it. But we have seven SANs to defend us. Because we believe that we’ve done the right thing.”
The minister also addressed challenges related to the Lekki Free Zone, which falls within the second section of the project.
“And so we have the Dangote refinery. We have to pass in front of it. So we have come to design an 80-meter span bridge over that section so that here we have seamless truck movement without having any obstruction.
“We have met with the Lagos Free Zone, We have met with Lekki’s free area, We discussed with them on Friday. And they will solve all their problems.
“It will cost us more because we are putting flyovers over the conflict points.”
Umahi has reaffirmed the government’s commitment to ensure the implementation of coastal roads in Lagos-Calabar while responding to concerns of stakeholders.
