Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has weighed in on the cost of the controversial Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project that was approved by President Bola Tinubu.
Makinde, who spoke at an event in a viral video on Friday, said there was no need for the Minister of Works, David Umahi, to be âdancing around the costâ of the project.
The governor was reacting to a heated exchange that unfolded live on television between Umahi and Arise TV presenter Rufai Oseni on Tuesday.
Oseni had requested the minister to analyse the cost of the project, kilometre by kilometre.
The request didnât sit well with Umahi, who declared himself âprofessorâ of practice in engineering while elaborating that the costs of the road in kilometres are not the same and would be too complicated for the journalist to understand.
He said, âThese are elementary questions. And it makes no sense (sic). A process is ongoing, payment has been made, and you are saying, âhow has this money been utilised?. The money is meant for the project, and it will be paid according to the work done.
âWhen a certificate is generated, and it is approved through a process in the Ministry of Works, it will then be given to the funders, who will, in turn, check if the works were done. How can you be asking for cost of kilometre? The prices are different. The next kilometre is different from the next kilometre.
âKeep quiet and stop saying what you donât know. Iâm a professor in this field. You donât understand anything. I understand engineering very well. You have no knowledge of what you ask. You have no knowledge of what youâre asking.â
Oseni, who also refused to back down, responded, âMinister, itâs alright, keep dignifying yourself, and let the world know who you truly are.â
However, justifying the journalistâs question to the minister, Makinde said, âThey asked a minister how much is the coastal road is, and then you (Umahi) are dancing around and going to say that no, the next kilometre is different from the next kilometres. Then what is the average cost?
âWhen we did the Oyo to Iseyin road then, it was about N9.99 billion, almost N10 billion. About 34 or 35 kilometres, average cost is about N238 million per kilometre.
âBut when we did Iseyin to Ogbomoso, that was 76 kilometres, it was about N43 billion, average cost is about N500 million per kilometre. And we had two bridges, one over the Ogun river and then one at Ogbomoso end.â
Recalled that last year, it was reported that the Federal Government announced the commencement of construction work on the 700km Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, which spans nine states and includes two spurs leading to the northern states.
Umahi made the announcement during the official handover of the first phase of the project, made up of 47.47 kilometers of dual carriageway, to Hitech Construction Company Limited, and which is to be constructed in concrete pavement.
This was contained in a statement issued by his Special Adviser (Media), Uchenna Orji.
According to him, the Minister who was in company with the Federal Ministry of Worksâ Controller in charge of Lagos State, Mrs O. I. Kesha, emphasised the need for all contractors handling Federal Governmentâs road projects to deliver within a record time, noting that the government would not allow variation arising from delays or slow pace of work once mobilisation had been done.
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