Atiku Challenges Tinubu To Tell Nigerians Cost Of Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway Project

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has challenged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to disclose the cost of Nigeria’s Lagos-Calabar Highway Project.

For a 700-kilometer project, Atiku estimated that the total cost could be N15.7 trillion, or $12.56 billion, which is higher than previous estimates.

In a statement issued by his Media Coordinator, Paul Ibe, Atiku described the project’s history, claiming that the Tinubu administration has once again revealed its penchant for dubious and shady deals in the face of the 700-kilometer Lagos-Calabar coastal highway.

He stated: “This project returned to public discourse at the end of the Goodluck Jonathan administration in November 2014, when it was announced President Jonathan had signed the 10-state, 22-station project with China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCEfort of $11.97 billion.

However, former President Jonathan was unable to begin the project before losing the election. However, his successor, former President Muhammadu Buhari, expressed his intention to start it and announced in 2016 that the project had been renegotiated from $800 million to $11.1 billion and would be completed within three years. But it kept stalling.

“In August 2021, while Buhari was on vacation, then-Information Minister Lai Mohammed announced that the FEC had ‘approved the memo for the ratification of the President’s approval for the award’ of the $11.1 billion project, which would be completed in six years.” However, nothing was done.

“In September 2023, barely weeks after being appointed by Tinubu, Works Minister Engr. Dave Umahi announced that the project had been awarded to Gilbert Chagoury’s Hitech Construction Company Limited (Hitech), with no record of competitive bidding or an FEC decision.

“Umahi refused to say how much the project would cost. He only said it would pass through nine states and have a railway running through the middle. Most importantly, the works minister stated that the project would be free of cost to Nigeria, which is currently facing an all-time high level of debt.

Atiku added that the works minister even stated, “Let me announce that it is a public-private partnership.” The Hitech group will look for the money. They have already found the money, which is great because it saves us time talking, holding meetings, and wasting resources.”

The former Vice President explained that “the concept of the project was build, operate, and transfer,” which meant that Hitech would build the road, operate it for a few years, and then recoup its costs through tollgates before handing it over to the Nigerian government.

“Because the project did not require public funds, it did not receive approval from the National Assembly, which has the power of appropriation. Furthermore, because Chagoury’s firm was to fund the project entirely, the project only went through the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), with no record of competitive bidding.

Atiku added that “to the surprise of many Nigerians, Umahi returned to FEC with a memo in March 2024 seeking approval of N1.06 trillion that would be paid to Chagoury’s firm for the first phase of the project, which is entirely in Lagos.”

“This pilot phase was to start from the edge of Chagoury’s Eko Atlantic City on Ahmadu Bello Way, Victoria Island, and end at the Lekki Deep Sea Port, Ibeju-Lekki, a distance of 47.47 kilometres. The Tinubu administration has so far refused to reveal the total cost of the project. Umahi, who appeared on Channels Television recently, declined to answer questions about the project’s total cost.

“But if 47.47km costs about N1.06 trillion, that means each kilometre costs N22.5 billion, or $18 million. For a 700-kilometer project, the total cost could be N15.7 trillion ($12.56 billion), which is higher than previous estimates.

The former Vice President lamented that everything about the project is shrouded in secrecy, saying, “It is curious that the terms of such an audacious project continue to be shrouded in secrecy.” Worse, job losses are expected, such as the demolition of the Landmark Beach Resort in Oniru, which will result in the loss of over 12,000 direct and indirect jobs and more than $200 million in investments, according to its management.

“More intriguing is the fact that the entire pilot phase of this project begins and ends in Lagos, particularly in the heart of Bola Tinubu’s business interests. It is no secret that Tinubu and Chagoury are business partners.

“The same Hitech, owned by Chagoury, was unable to complete the 50-kilometer Lekki-Epe Motorway. Despite installing two tollgates along the axis, Hitech, a member of the Lekki Concession Company (LCC) consortium, was only able to build about 20 kilometres, forcing the Lagos State Government to buy it back in 2013 for N7.5 billion ($50 million at the time), resulting in a loss to the Lagos people.”

Atiku argued that Tinubu has once again prioritised national business interests over those of the Nigerian people, in violation of his oath of office, which states that “I will not allow interests to influence my official conduct or decisions.”

Atiku stated: “The so-called pilot phase from Eko Atlantic to Lekki Deep Sea Port was originally conceived as a Lagos State Government project, but due to its enormous cost and the fact that Lagos State has a massive debt burden, thanks to Tinubu, the Federal Government is now implementing it under the guise of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway. This could explain why there are concerns that the project will never reach Calabar, as well as why it is starting in Lagos rather than Calabar.

“Despite not disclosing the total cost of this project, the Tinubu administration is on the verge of establishing a so-called Renewed Hope Infrastructure Development Fund, a fund aimed at constructing capital projects without the usual budgeting process.

“The fund aims to raise N20 trillion ($14.5 billion) in seed capital for the Lagos-Calabar coastal highway and other projects. The initiative aims to secure $35 billion annually from pension funds, concessionary loans, insurance companies, sovereign wealth funds, private sector arms of multilateral development institutions, and bilateral private sector investors, among others. The plan is expected to include Diaspora funding, as well as equity and endowment funds.

“However, this renewed hope fund, which will be spent at Tinubu’s discretion and without transparency, is likely to become another means of syphoning public funds through shady projects. With the current Lagos-Calabar highway already being handled in secrecy, it is unclear how such a fund will be managed.”