₦airaland Forum

Na Nigerians






Swear dey kill them

NA THEM





NA THEM




NA THEM





Ajeh

Government dont care about the people

Buying Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) in Nigeria has become a major expense for car owners, commercial drivers, and everyday citizens. Because petrol takes a significant portion of household budgets, getting full value for every naira spent at the pump is necessary.

Yet, many motorists leave filling stations with tanks that drop faster than expected. While high fuel consumption or mechanical faults are sometimes to blame, dishonest pump operators frequently shortchange unsuspecting drivers right before their eyes.

Consumer advocacy watchdogs and regulatory monitors such as the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) continue to urge buyers to stay alert to pump manipulation practices across retail outlets.

In this article, Tribune Online examines four sneaky tactics fuel attendants deploy to deliver less fuel to customers and what motorists must look out for to protect their hard-earned money.

The unreset zero trick
The most common method attendants use relies on simple driver distraction. When a vehicle drives up to the pump, the attendant engages the driver in quick conversation, asking how much fuel they need while already slotting the nozzle into the fuel tank.

Instead of clearing the previous customer’s transaction, the attendant begins dispensing fuel from where the meter stopped.

For instance, if the previous buyer purchased three thousand naira worth of fuel, the attendant starts dispensing from that mark until your total reaches the figure you requested.

The step-by-step nature of this scheme works because the attendant rushes the transaction to prevent you from glancing at the screen. You end up paying the full amount you requested, but your car receives fuel minus the initial reading on the display. Always ensure the meter clears back to zero before the nozzle trigger is pulled.

The rapid trigger squeeze
Another widespread practice involves how the attendant holds and manipulates the dispensing nozzle. A standard fuel nozzle has a locking clip that allows petrol to flow steadily until the tank fills or the target amount is reached on the meter.

Dishonest attendants deliberately ignore the automatic lock and operate the trigger manually. They press and release the handle rapidly while the pump is running. Each time the trigger is suddenly squeezed and released, the flow of liquid halts momentarily, but air pressure can register on the spinning meter.

Automotive mechanics and consumer rights groups point out that this stop-and-start routine causes the meter to count air alongside fuel. The liquid flow is interrupted while the digital counter on the machine keeps spinning upward, leaving you with fewer litres in your tank.

The stretched and folded pipe routine
Fuel dispensing hoses are designed to be long and flexible to reach vehicle tanks on either side of the pump. However, this length provides an easy way to trap fuel that has already been measured and paid for on the machine.

When dispensing begins, an attendant may leave the hose sagging heavily on the ground or step on a fold in the pipe.

As the machine finishes dispensing your requested volume, a noticeable amount of liquid remains trapped inside the sag of the hose rather than draining downward into your car tank.

The attendant quickly pulls the nozzle out, clicks it shut, and hangs it back on the dispenser without lifting the hose. That trapped petrol drains into the dispenser reservoir or stays in the pipe to serve as an unearned bonus for the attendant during their daily cash balancing.

The intentional short-sale distraction
This technique targets buyers making large purchases or those who look preoccupied with their phones. An attendant will listen to your request, say twenty thousand naira, but knowingly enter ten thousand naira into the pump keypad.

When the pump automatically cuts off at ten thousand naira, the attendant feigns an innocent mistake. They apologise profusely and claim they misheard your instruction, offering to immediately start a second run to complete the balance.

During the confusion and apology, the attendant resets the meter and runs the second batch, but often manipulates the split amounts or fails to deliver the full remaining volume. The abrupt halt disrupts the driver’s mental calculation of the litre reading, making it easy to shave off several litres in the rush to close the deal.

Thanks Tinubu also for mKing possible for





You to get money

Celebrity









Na them and services men in uniform

Audio



Until




Commence

Nothing impossible for God







Not all those FAKE miracles bt G.O

A road that began as a dream and became a nightmare’
Every great nation has a signature road. America has Route 66. Germany has Autobahn. UAE has Sheikh Zayed Road. Nigeria wanted to have Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway – a 700km, 10-lane superhighway from Victoria Island, Lagos to Calabar, Cross River, passing through Ogun, Ondo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom.

On paper, it is beautiful architecture: Coastal road that will unlock coastal economy, reduce travel time, create jobs, link Lekki Deep Sea Port to all Niger Delta ports, open tourism. But in reality, before the first 30km is even finished, the project has become architecture in ruin. Ruin of procurement, ruin of transparency, ruin of trust.

Firm scratch: The 15 trillion naira project (some say N15.6 trillion, some say $13 billion, depending on which day Minister David Umahi speaks) has been mired in controversy from day one: No appropriation details in 2024 budget. No competitive bidding. No public Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report.

Conversion of original coastal railway tracks concept to road without explanation. Question over propriety – why coastal highway over original Lagos-to-Calabar road networks that are already dead? Curiosity over Eko Atlantic City and Eko Hotel where Gilbert Chagoury – owner of HITECH Construction – owns 75% equity, and where the road now begins. Now, Minister Dave Umahi speaking in tongues about possible diversion to align with East-West Road, a development that will exclude Ondo and Delta region. What is now coastal about a road that runs inland?

This is not just a road project. It is a national security asset. It is a 700km strategic infrastructure.

A minister cannot just rush to a media house to announce a road diversion of such magnitude in a cavalier manner. This is a presidential function. It requires thorough briefing to National Assembly in a good country where laws rule rather than men. Reason? We are bound to ask: What happened to the cost and consequences of cutting short the expectation of Ondo and Delta people? Before this opaque process, rerouting controversies and Chagoury’s involvement affects Tinubu’s government and his re-election bid in 2027, there should be presidency’s clarification, accountability and civic engagement. This piece is that warning. Mr. President, this road diversion and lack of transparency around it can be a time bomb you need to defuse before it is too late.

The original sin – procurement without process: The first ruin in this architecture is procurement. Nigeria has a law: Public Procurement Act 2007. It says all federal projects above N100 million must go through open competitive bidding, must be advertised, must have BPP certificate of no objection, must have FEC approval with details.

Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road – N15 trillion – is the biggest road project in Nigerian history. Bigger than Second Niger Bridge (N400bn). Bigger than Lagos-Ibadan Expressway (N300bn). Yet no appropriation details.

In 2024 Appropriation Act, there was no line item of N15 trillion for Lagos-Calabar. What we saw was N500 million for “coastal road” in Ministry of Works budget. How do you fund N15 trillion with N500 million? Later, we heard it is under “unforeseen infrastructure fund” or “borrowed money.” National Assembly never debated N15 trillion.

In a democracy, even President cannot spend N15 trillion without National Assembly appropriation. That is Section 80 of Constitution. Where is the appropriation? Presidency must clarify. The project was awarded to HITECH Construction Company Limited – owned by Gilbert Chagoury, a long-time friend and business associate of President Bola Tinubu. Awarded on single-source, not competitive. Minister Umahi said, “HITECH is the only company that can do it because they did Eko Atlantic.” That is not procurement law. Even if they did Eko Atlantic, you must advertise and allow Julius Berger, CCECC, Arab Contractors, Setraco, etc to bid. That is transparency. Why single-source a N15 trillion project to a friend’s company? That question alone is enough to derail a government in a country where laws rule.

The Son Connection: What about the connection of the HITECH project where the President’s son, Seyi Tinubu, is clearly a director/board member of a HITECH subsidiary – CDK Integrated Industries? CDK is linked to HITECH. The company says Seyi is not directly on HITECH board, but corporate registry shows overlapping directorships. Even if not direct, perception matters.

In public procurement, conflict of interest is enough to void process. If President’s son has business relationship with contractor handling N15 trillion project, the presidency must come clean with full disclosure of beneficial ownership, not just press statements. Otherwise, opposition will use it in 2027 as part of proof of state capture.

This is the first architecture in ruin: Procurement opacity. And it is avoidable. All presidency needs to do is publish: Full BPP certificate, FEC memo, bidding documents, cost per km, funding model. Publish it on Ministry of Works website. Let Nigerians see. If you don’t, you give all opposition elements a campaign jingle for 2027: “15 trillion road to Chagoury’s house.”

The environmental ruin: Where is the EIA report? Every major road project in Nigeria must have Environmental Impact Assessment under EIA Act 1992. For coastal road, it is even more critical because you are building on Atlantic shoreline – fragile ecosystem, mangroves, fishing communities, erosion. Where is the EIA report for Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway? Environmental activists asked Ministry of Environment. Ministry said they have not seen it. NOSDRA said they have not seen it. Local communities in Okun Ajah, Lagos – whose houses were demolished for first 30km – said they never saw any EIA consultation. They woke up one day and saw bulldozers. Minister Umahi said EIA is “ongoing” even as construction is ongoing. That is illegality. You cannot start construction before EIA. EIA must come before, not after.

What do we say about clear absence of details of EIA? That the road will destroy coastal environment, fishing livelihoods of millions, increase coastal erosion, (has already destroyed part of Landmark Beach, which contributed N10bn tourism yearly, without compensation? And Landmark is just one. What of 200 other small businesses demolished in Lagos without proper valuation? What of fishing communities in Ondo – Ayetoro, a community already sinking due to ocean surge – that will be further destroyed by coastal road if EIA is not done?

Mr. President, you are from Lagos. You know what Atlantic surge did to Bar Beach in 1990s before Eko Atlantic built sea wall. If you build coastal road without EIA and sea wall protection, Atlantic will wash the road away in 10 years. That will be waste of N15 trillion. Publish EIA. Hold public hearing in all eight coastal states. That is law. That is transparency. That is how to find architecture in ruin. It isn’t too late.

The conceptual ruin: – road or rail? And what is coastal about inland diversion? Original concept under President Goodluck Jonathan and even under President Buhari’s 2016 plan was Lagos-Calabar Coastal Railway – a standard gauge railway line along coast to move goods and people.

Railway makes sense for coastal economy: Heavy goods from Lekki Deep Sea Port to Calabar port, to Onitsha, to link to hinterland. Why was it converted to road? Who converted? What is the feasibility study that says road is better than rail? What of existing Lagos-Calabar road networks – Benin-Sagamu, Benin-Warri, Warri-Ughelli, East-West Road – that are already dead and need fixing? Why build new superhighway when old highways are death traps?

will not campaign on your achievements in fuel subsidy removal or tax reform. They will campaign on “N15 trillion road to nowhere, road to Chagoury’s house, road that excluded Ondo and Delta.” Don’t give them that bullet. A road that is supposed to connect Nigeria should not divide Nigeria. A road that is supposed to be coastal should not become inland overnight via minister’s press interview. A road that is supposed to be national security asset shouldn’t be diverted in a cavalier manner. Take charge, Mr. President. Defuse time bomb before 2027.

Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara has rewarded players, coaches, and officials of the Real Madrid Academy in Port Harcourt with fifty million naira following their successful tour of the United Kingdom.

The governor commended the team for representing Rivers State and Nigeria with distinction, assuring them of his administration’s continued support for sports development and youth empowerment.

The reward was announced during a reception for the delegation at the Banquet Hall of Government House, Port Harcourt.

It was an opportunity to showcase their talents, gain international exposure, and test their abilities against players from other countries.

Sponsored by the Rivers State Government, the delegation from the Real Madrid Academy, Port Harcourt, comprised sixty players and twelve coaches and officials.

Back from the United Kingdom, the team visited Government House, Port Harcourt, to express their appreciation to Governor Siminalayi Fubara for sponsoring the trip and providing them with an opportunity to experience football at the international level.

Beyond the experience gained, the tour appears to be opening new doors for some of the players, with clubs and teams from the United Kingdom and Italy reportedly expressing interest in their talents.

Governor Siminalayi Fubara commended the players, coaches, and officials for their discipline and commitment, noting that they had made Rivers State and Nigeria proud.

He urged the young footballers to remain focused, maintain good conduct, and continue to work hard in pursuit of their sporting ambitions.

The governor also assured them that his administration would sustain its commitment to providing an enabling environment for young people to develop their talents and excel in their chosen fields.

As a further demonstration of appreciation and encouragement, Governor Fubara announced a cash reward for the team.

The gesture is expected to motivate the players to greater achievements while reinforcing the importance of investing in grassroots sports development and nurturing young talents.

(Follow AIT News on WhatsApp, AfricaIndependentTV on YouTube, ait_online on Facebook and X (Formerly Twitter), and officialait on TikTok, Instagram and Threads)

All man for himself

And we also did a median demarcation because bridges are not built for static loads. And so the engineers, emergency engineers began to talk. Content creators began to talk. And I think there are some people that are very mad. You talk what you do not know. You are not an engineer. Some of you didn't even go to school. You just talk. Even one lady that is an IPOB spokesperson who has turned to become an Obidient spokesperson was even talking, calling me out and talking all kinds of rubbish.

strangest:
Agbero..... That's their handwork

brt is their nightmare





Useless human beings

Rip to the death







Wetin motorcycle looking for in brt lane and highway.






Dangerous job without insurance.

I heard Balablue has increase their salary








Using it to smoke colos

Up shooting




Up real Madrid

Professor of coastal road in action

Popular Nigerian streamer and content creator, Habeeb Hamzat, popularly known as Peller, has announced plans to host Nobel laureate Professor Wole Soyinka on his livestream, promising viewers a session filled with “proper English” and “grammar.”

Peller disclosed the plan during a livestream on Tuesday, saying he would announce further details about the proposed session at a later date.

I want to do a stream with Mr. Wole Soyinka. I will announce it soon and tell you guys what the plan is. It will be a proper English day on that day. You will hear some ‘grammar’ that day,” he said.

The proposed collaboration has drawn attention because of the contrast between Peller’s humorous, informal streaming style and Soyinka’s reputation as one of Africa’s most distinguished literary figures.

Peller has built a large following through his livestreams, which often feature spontaneous conversations, humour and interactions with celebrities and other content creators.

Soyinka, meanwhile, is a renowned Nigerian playwright, poet and novelist who became the first African to win the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1986.

The prospect of bringing the two personalities together has generated interest online, with the anticipated session expected to offer a different experience from Peller’s usual livestreams.

Although Peller said he would provide more information about the plan, no date for the proposed session was announced in his remarks.

It is also unclear whether Soyinka has accepted the invitation.

Rubbish

When will hungry bill be




Passed

?

No BENUE state






Tinubu dey fear

School na scam






Tompolo over education

Human beings

Godfullsam:
What will they do with the roofing sheet?

Something that have already been nailed.

The thief is sure not far from the neighbourhood

Thief no dey short


all in business

Iwere Engineers Forum, IEF, has urged President Bola Tinubu to immediately intervene in the reported plan to divert some sections of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway away from the Atlantic coastline as the route approaches major Ilaje communities and the Itsekiri coastal belt.

IEF said the engineering concerns cited by the Ministry of Works in the Ondo and Delta corridors, including deep peat, weak soils and large water crossings, were not sufficient justification for abandoning the areas.

In a statement, the forum’s Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Professor Ogbemi Omatete; Vice Chairman, Gbesimi Akperi; General Secretary, Dr Silver Ejejigbe; and members Kunu Harmony, Dr Felix U. Atakere and Jude Pemu, said modern engineering offered multiple solutions, including corridor optimisation, strategic setbacks from the active shoreline, pile-supported embankments, viaducts, long-span bridges, staged consolidation, vertical drains, lightweight fills, deep foundations, advanced geotechnical monitoring and climate-resilient drainage.

They urged the President to direct an immediate, independent comparative review of the Ondo-Delta alignment and make relevant alignment drawings, chainages, geotechnical assessments, bridge assumptions and comparative life-cycle cost evidence available to affected stakeholders, subject to legitimate security and procurement restrictions.

They also called for the establishment of a joint technical working group involving the Federal Ministry of Works, relevant environmental and maritime agencies, the Ondo and Delta state governments, qualified independent engineers, including IEF, and representatives of affected coastal communities.

The statement reads: “Our position is straightforward: a national project conceived, named and justified as a Coastal Highway should, subject to sound engineering and environmental safeguards, remain functionally coastal. It should run broadly parallel to the Atlantic coastline and directly unlock the coastal settlements, ports, jetties, fisheries, industrial locations and blue-economy assets for which such a corridor is uniquely valuable. Inland cities and state capitals can and should be connected to the trunk coastal corridor by high-quality strategic spurs and interchanges. The trunk road itself should not have to abandon the coastal development belt merely to provide access that can be achieved through connectors.

We acknowledge that the Federal Ministry of Works has publicly cited serious engineering concerns in the Ondo and Delta corridors, including deep peat, weak soils and large water crossings. IEF does not dismiss those concerns. Our concern is that they should not become reasons to abandon the coastal development objective before a transparent, independently verifiable comparison of viable set-back and hybrid coastal alignments has been completed. Modern engineering provides multiple responses: corridor optimisation, strategic setbacks from the active shoreline, pile-supported embankments, viaducts, long-span bridges, staged consolidation, vertical drains, lightweight fills, deep foundations, advanced geotechnical monitoring and climate-resilient drainage.

“The appropriate engineering question is therefore not whether the road must sit on the beach. It should not. The question is whether a resilient Atlantic-facing corridor, generally set back from the active shoreline and locally adjusted around exceptional geotechnical, ecological and navigational constraints, can maintain direct access to the Ilaje and Itsekiri coastal belt. We submit that this alternative deserves full feasibility-level investigation before the coastal corridor is foreclosed.

The coastal road idea in this axis has deep historical roots. Public historical accounts of the late Chief Festus Okotie-Eboh record the planning of the Koko-Ogheye motor road, while later accounts describe the Koko-Ogheye-Epe concept as a coastal connection intended to shorten travel between Lagos and the Niger Delta. The Koko port facilities, Escravos navigation and other maritime infrastructure formed part of the same broader development vision. We therefore respectfully urge that today’s Lagos-Calabar project preserve, rather than bypass, the strategic maritime logic of connecting the Atlantic economic belt.

“Coastal and deltaic highways are difficult infrastructure projects, but they are not unprecedented. Louisiana’s Department of Transportation and Development, for example, is replacing a vulnerable portion of LA 1 through sensitive coastal wetlands with an approximately 18-mile elevated highway because the existing route is affected by subsidence, erosion and flooding. The lesson is not that Nigeria should copy another country blindly; it is that modern highway engineering can maintain critical coastal access through weak wetland environments where the strategic case justifies the investment. Nigeria should subject the Ilaje-Itsekiri alternatives to the same disciplined engineering test.

There is also a relevant Nigerian precedent within the same Niger Delta coastal environment. The Chevron Escravos Terminal is served by an established asphalt runway in the Escravos coastal belt, constructed and operated on low-lying deltaic terrain and used for regular personnel and logistics flights, including aircraft in approximately the 100-passenger class. Its long-standing operation demonstrates that major transport infrastructure can be engineered and maintained in this difficult coastal setting. IEF therefore recommends that the comparative study obtain and review available geotechnical, pavement, ground-improvement, drainage and maintenance records for the Escravos runway as a Nigerian benchmark. The precise equivalence of its soil strata to those at any proposed highway chainage should, of course, be confirmed through site-specific geotechnical investigations.

“The weak-soil argument must also be considered in its wider Niger Delta context. Soft, compressible clay, organic deposits, peat, high groundwater levels and swamp conditions are not unique to the Ilaje-Itsekiri axis; similarly difficult foundation conditions occur extensively across the Bayelsa and Rivers coastal and deltaic belts, through which a genuinely coastal Lagos-Calabar corridor must ultimately pass. Diverting substantially inland whenever weak coastal soil is encountered would progressively convert the project from an Atlantic coastal highway into an inland highway. It could also increase travel distances and times between Lagos and the South-South coastal economic belt. The engineering objective should therefore be to optimise the coastal alignment and apply appropriate ground-improvement, piled, elevated or hybrid solutions where justified, rather than treating difficult but regionally characteristic terrain as an automatic reason to abandon the coast.

Importantly, the coastal engineering geology and geotechnical challenges are regionally comparable from Ondo through Delta, Bayelsa and Rivers to the Cross River coastal belt. Although site-specific soil conditions vary and must be verified through boreholes and surveys, the same reasoning used to divert the highway inland in Ondo could repeatedly push it inland through Bayelsa, Rivers and ultimately Cross River State. Such successive diversions would progressively undermine the intended Atlantic and coastal function and could increase travel distances between Lagos and the South-South rather than provide the most direct coastal connection.

“Modern highway and bridge engineering provides alternative methods for transferring structural loads through weak soils, reducing embankment settlement and maintaining road elevations above flood levels. The engineering question should therefore not be whether a highway can be constructed through such terrain, but rather: Which foundation and superstructure system provides the best combination of safety, constructability, environmental protection, whole-life cost and long-term reliability?

“Many communities along this coast face chronic erosion, flooding and shoreline retreat. The highway programme offers a once-in-a-generation opportunity to combine transportation access with a coordinated coastal-resilience programme. The scope should therefore include shoreline-risk mapping, beach and dune management where appropriate, revetments or other protective structures only where coastal-process modelling supports them, drainage and flood-resilience works, and permanent access routes capable of transporting rock, armour units, piling equipment and emergency materials to threatened coastlines. Road access can dramatically improve the logistics of constructing and maintaining shoreline protection.

A true Atlantic corridor can connect coastal industrial zones, jetties, fisheries, marine logistics bases, fabrication facilities, energy infrastructure and future ports to the national road network. It can reduce the cost of moving heavy equipment and manufactured goods between inland markets and coastal loading and offloading points. Properly planned interchanges can create new industrial clusters without forcing heavy traffic through traditional settlements.

“The corridor can support fisheries, aquaculture, cold-chain logistics, marine services, tourism, ports, offshore energy support, ship repair, coastal manufacturing and other blue-economy activities. These benefits should be quantified through a formal socioeconomic and transport-economic study, but excluding coastal communities from direct road access risks leaving precisely the maritime economy that a coastal highway could unlock outside the project’s main development corridor.

“Direct road access can materially improve the speed and reliability of police, civil defence, fire, ambulance, disaster-response and maritime-security operations in isolated coastal settlements. A continuous coastal corridor would also provide evacuation and relief-distribution capacity during flooding and other emergencies. Communications ducts, fibre, power infrastructure and emergency lay-bys could be integrated into the right-of-way, strengthening both civilian resilience and legitimate security operations.

“Road and fibre connectivity can reduce the isolation of coastal schools, health centres and communities; improve access to universities and technical training; make it easier for teachers, doctors and skilled personnel to serve the region; and allow digital services and telecommunications infrastructure to reach communities that are currently expensive to connect. Better mobility can also make participation in lawful civic, administrative and political processes easier by reducing geographic isolation.

“Construction and long-term operation can create opportunities in civil works, marine logistics, surveying, maintenance, hospitality, fisheries logistics, fabrication, security support and other services. This should be accompanied by transparent local-content programmes, skills certification and apprenticeships so that host communities participate not merely as observers but as trained contributors to the infrastructure economy.

IEF strongly supports the development of Edo State, inland Ondo and inland Delta. This need not be an either-or proposition. Strategic spurs can connect Igbokoda and other Ondo centres, Edo economic nodes, Warri, Koko and other inland locations to the coastal trunk road. A hierarchy of a trunk highway and connecting spurs can deliver both coastal transformation and inland accessibility without sacrificing the defining coastal function of the Lagos-Calabar project.

“The Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway has the potential to become one of the defining infrastructure legacies of this administration. That legacy will be strongest if future generations can see a continuous national Atlantic development corridor that opens previously isolated coastal communities to commerce, security, education, healthcare, communications and industry while protecting vulnerable shorelines. A road that runs substantially inland across a major coastal region may still be a valuable highway, but it would not deliver the same coastal-development benefits to the communities it bypasses.”

Owner of Nigeria has spoke






IMF

😆😅🤣😁😄😃😀😆






Tinubu is wonderful man

Buhari Tinubu and APC are problems




Of




This NATION

Works Minister David Umahi yesterday said the Federal Government has not paused the 750-kilometre Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project in favour of the East-West Road.

He told reporters at the State House in Abuja after meeting with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu that the original alignment remained intact, with construction progressing on several sections.

The minister explained that integrating an additional 400 kilometres of the East-West Road into the Federal Government’s infrastructure development programme was a complementary initiative, not a replacement for any section of the coastal highway.

It was claimed we abandoned the alignment of 750 kilometres of Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway in favour of an alignment of the East-West Road. That is very mischievous information.

“The Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway is moving and moving even faster than envisaged,” Umahi said.

According to him, Section One, covering 47.7 kilometres in Lagos State, had been fully constructed, while Section Two, spanning 55 kilometres, was expected to be ready by the middle of November.

He added that work was progressing on Sections 3A and 3B, covering 75 kilometres across Cross River and Akwa Ibom states, with construction exceeding 40 per cent completion.

According to him, Sections 4A and 4B, covering approximately 65 kilometres between Ogun and Ondo states, are also under construction, while the alignment from the Lagos end has advanced into Ondo State.

Umahi said construction activities were progressing from the Calabar end of the highway, in line with President Tinubu’s directive that work on the administration’s four legacy road projects should commence simultaneously from both ends.

He said another section of the coastal highway in Akwa Ibom State, measuring 62.5 kilometres, had already achieved more than 20 per cent completion despite construction having commenced less than three months ago.

The minister explained that the decision to incorporate the East-West Road into the broader development plan was informed by the need to improve regional connectivity, protect existing infrastructure against flooding, and enhance the investment potential of the Niger Delta.

What we have done is to also seek for the approval of Mr President to also add the 400 kilometres of East-West Road, starting from Edo State down to Akwa Ibom, and also to Cross River,” he said.

He noted that although portions of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway had already been procured in Cross River and Akwa Ibom states, the existing East-West Road extended beyond those sections, making its integration necessary for comprehensive regional development.

Umahi expressed concern over the vulnerability of portions of the East-West Road to flooding, explaining that some sections were constructed below flood levels.

He recalled that about three weeks ago, sections of the road around Agbarho in the Ughelli axis of Delta State suffered serious damage, requiring the intervention of the state government.

He said similar challenges had been experienced in Edo State, reinforcing the need for a comprehensive intervention along the 400-kilometre corridor.

The minister stressed that the proposed intervention on the East-West Road would not interfere with the original coastal highway alignment, noting that survey and engineering activities were ongoing in states yet to be covered by major construction.

So, nobody has abandoned the 750 kilometre Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway. In fact, as we are talking now, we have surveyors; we are surveying the axis of Edo State, we are surveying the axis of Delta State, we are surveying the axis of Bayelsa, and then Rivers, and that will be the end of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway,” he said.

Umahi also said President Tinubu approved an expansion of another legacy road project connecting Akwanga, Jos, Bauchi, Gombe, Biu, and Maiduguri.

According to him, the original 700-kilometre project has been expanded with an additional 410 kilometres through Langtang and Wukari, bringing the total planned length to approximately 1,100 kilometres.

He explained that the expansion followed the administration’s strategy of extending major highway corridors to improve connectivity between communities and stimulate economic activities across the country.

The minister maintained that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway remained a central component of the administration’s infrastructure development agenda and that neither the proposed East-West Road intervention nor any other complementary road project could alter its approved alignment.

“So, the 750-kilometre Coastal Highway is intact and cannot be changed, and nobody has the power to change it, because it’s already designed and it’s ongoing,” Umahi stated.

LIFE GOES on

After




TINUBU GOES HOME




Coastal road UMAHI will be arrested