₦airaland Forum

Don’t Listen To People, Give Us More Money For Projects, Umahi Tells Tinubu

[i]The works minister's minister's comments come following criticism over the cost and transparency of the "ambitious" 700km Lagos-Calabar highway project.

The Minister [/i]of Works, David Umahi, has urged President Bola Tinubu to ignore critics and provide more funding for ongoing infrastructural projects across the country amid the ongoing Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway construction.

Umahi made the plea on Thursday during the official commissioning of the Deep Sea Port Access Road in Lagos.

He noted that international financiers had endorsed the project, even describing it as undervalued.

“I want to assure you, sir, that the international financiers have given you kudos because they say the project is even undervalued. I commend you very highly, and I am grateful for the support.

“Sir, don’t listen to people. Give us more money; we will deliver all these projects, sir. We will deliver,” Umahi stated.

His comments come following criticism over the cost and transparency of the “ambitious” 700km Lagos-Calabar highway project.

President Bola Tinubu, Minister of Works David Umahi, Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, and Aliko Dangote, on Thursday, June 5, 2025, during the official commissioning of the Deep Sea Port Access Road in Lagos.

Addressing the president directly, Umahi defended the project’s valuation and highlighted the technical complexities involved in its construction.

“This highway… tell me the cost of a kilometre. What can you quantify as the cost of a kilometre when you have a section of 10km that has a bit of 10 to 20 metres and you compare it to another section with good soil?” he said.

“When people gather counsel without knowledge… Your Excellency, I am a Fellow of the Society of Engineers, and I understand the figures; I understand this work.”

The minister also expressed confidence in the timely delivery of the highway’s initial phase.

“I want to thank you for commissioning the first 30km, and I reassure you that this first section will be completed by December. We shall toll it, and Section 2 will also be close to completion. I commend the contractor very highly.”

‘Don’t Listen To Critics’

President Bola Tinubu, on Thursday, June 5, 2025, during the official commissioning of the Deep Sea Port Access Road in Lagos.
Responding to the minister’s remarks, President Tinubu, in his speech during the deep-sea port access road commissioning, dismissed the critics of the highway project and reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to infrastructure development.

“I appeal to you, David (Umahi): don’t listen to those critics; they don’t know what they’re talking about. If they don’t like the road or it’s too expensive, toll it for them,” President Tinubu stated.

“If they don’t like the road, they can use Idumota. We will not stop building the needed infrastructure for economic development.”

In his speech, Umahi also highlighted the completion of the 27km by two-lane reinforced concrete Deep Sea Port Access Road.

“Today, I present to you the completed 27km by two-lane reinforced concrete access road – the Deep Sea Port Access Road. This road is very important. It will serve the deep-sea port so that all the challenges we faced with Apapa Port will be a thing of the past, using this place,” he said.

The commissioning ceremony also featured presentations by the minister on other completed and ongoing road projects across the country.

The commissioning of the deep-sea port also saw key guests in attendance, including Aliko Dangote, Lagos deputy governor, Obafemi Hamzat, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, and others.

In a symbolic gesture at the commissioning, Africa’s richest man, Dangote, named the main road leading to the Dangote Refinery in Lagos after President Tinubu, “in recognition of his contributions to infrastructural development.”

Dangote announced during the ceremony that the Deep Sea Port Access Road is “one of eight major projects totalling 500km, including two in Borno State that will link Nigeria to both Chad and Cameroon”.

The newly named road stretches through Epe–Ijebu-Ode and connects to the Sagamu–Benin Expressway, forming a crucial link for logistics and trade in the region.

Dangote announced during the ceremony that the Deep Sea Port Access Road is “one of eight major projects totalling 500km, including two in Borno State that will link Nigeria to both Chad and Cameroon”.