The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has called for a comprehensive investigation into the ₦15 trillion Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project, accusing the Federal Government of failing to demonstrate transparency and compliance with statutory requirements in the award and execution of the multitrillion-naira infrastructure project.
The party’s Board of Trustees (BoT), chaired by former Senate President Adolphus Wabara, said the government must explain the circumstances surrounding the contract award, funding, environmental assessments and recent changes to the proposed highway alignment.
Wabara said on Wednesday that the PDP had reviewed the controversies surrounding the 750-kilometre highway and concluded that the administration of President Bola Tinubu had fallen short of its obligations on transparency, accountability and service delivery.
The PDP accused the government of awarding and mobilising funds for the project without adequately demonstrating compliance with due process and the National Assembly’s appropriation requirements.
It also questioned whether the contract was awarded on the basis of an approved engineering design, environmental, economic and social impact assessments, and an open, competitive bidding process as stipulated by the Public Procurement Act 2007.
“The secrecy, lack of public accountability and utter disregard for statutory frameworks are alarming and unacceptable in a democracy,” Wabara said in a statement.
The party argued that the government’s reported decision to align parts of the highway with the existing East-West Road raised further questions about the planning and assessments undertaken before construction began.
It maintained that a project of such financial and strategic importance should not be implemented through what it described as arbitrary directives or shielded from public scrutiny, particularly when Nigerians are facing significant economic pressures.
The PDP therefore demanded a full investigation into the project, insisting that the public deserved clear answers about the decisions and processes behind the highway’s conception and implementation.
FG explains highway alignment changes
The PDP’s demand comes amid renewed scrutiny of the project following recent statements by Minister of Works Dave Umahi on the highway’s route through parts of the Niger Delta.
On Monday, Umahi said President Tinubu had not ordered the abandonment of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway. He explained that the government was pursuing the reconstruction of an additional 400 kilometres of the East-West Road alongside the original 750-kilometre coastal highway.
The minister said construction, surveying and design activities were continuing along the coastal corridor. He also reported that the first 47.47-kilometre section in Lagos had been constructed, while work on the 55-kilometre second section was progressing towards a targeted completion around mid-November.
Umahi’s clarification followed reports that the government had directed that sections of the route from Ondo towards Edo should use the existing East-West Road rather than create a new alignment along that corridor.
He insisted that the directive did not amount to abandoning or reducing the original coastal highway project. He described the East-West Road reconstruction as an additional undertaking and said the approach was intended to address difficult terrain and flooding concerns.
Calls grow for independent scrutiny
The PDP’s demand also comes amid wider calls for an independent review of the project following the controversy over the route.
The Makinde-Daura Presidential Campaign Organisation also called for an independent audit and urged the Federal Government to publish engineering assessments, alternative-route analyses, cost implications and details of payments made on the project.
The central issue is whether the government can demonstrate that the project’s planning, procurement, financing and subsequent route decisions comply with applicable laws and provide value for public money.
