A heated exchange ensued on Tuesday between Nigeria’s Minister of Works, David Umahi, and ARISE News breakfast show anchor, Rufai Oseni, during a live broadcast of ‘The Morning Show’ as both men clashed over the cost and details of the Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway project and the controversy surrounding Winhomes Estate.
The face-off began when Umahi expressed displeasure over what he described as “damaging information” dished out earlier by Oseni on the programme on Monday when a PDP chieftain, Otunba Segun Showunmi, featured.
“Before we proceed, I would like to talk about the Lagos–Calabar coastal highway because I listened to Otunba Segun Showunmi on the programme yesterday, and I was very displeased with a number of damaging information that Rufai dished out to the public,” Umahi said.
“Rufai was very wrong when he said that I was struggling to give figures on the Lagos–Calabar coastal highway cost. That is very disrespectful because this is my profession. I was in your studio, and I ran the figures from the take-off sheet and arrived at the cost.”
The minister accused Oseni of trying to “learn engineering from the back door,” saying it was unreasonable to demand a single cost per kilometre for the entire project.
“What Rufai is asking me to do is to give him the cost per kilometre from section one at Ahmadu Bello Way in Lagos down to Cross River, Calabar, and that is very unfortunate. There are no two sections of any road project where one kilometre costs the same as another. I thought I had sufficiently explained the cost of the coastal highway,” Umahi added.
He went further to explain that “30 per cent of the component is naira-denominated while the other 70 per cent is a non-naira component.”
According to him, “the non-naira component was put out to the public by a development bank, and the subscription was oversubscribed by $100 million because they said the cost of the coastal highway was very cheap. They even came to the site to inquire about the standard.”
Umahi accused the ARISE News Channel’s anchor of “inciting” the public with misleading claims.
“What Rufai said was very inciting, and I think he is very good at doing that. He should desist from it because it is actionable,” the Minister warned.
Turning to the Winhomes Estate controversy, Umahi said Oseni had “deliberately refused to understand the truth.”
“The woman in charge of Winhomes development, from available facts before me, bought 12 hectares of land from the villagers in 2022 for ₦50 million — not in dollars. As of 2021, she had started selling, but the document I have shows she bought the land in 2022,” the minister said.
He posed several questions, “Who are these investors? Was the land properly bought from the natives? Did you register with the Lagos State Government? Who are the people that bought these lands — was it in naira or dollars?”
Umahi revealed that journalists, including those from ARISE News, visited the site and “did not discover any evidence that one building was demolished.”
“There was no rubble, no vegetation indicating reclamation, and no evidence of Lagos State Government approval,” he stated.
At this point, Oseni interrupted the minister, alleging that Umahi had previously “reported him to President Bola Tinubu.”
“I have a right to reply. After you went to report me to President Tinubu, you are here with me again. It is obvious you came for me,” Oseni said.
But the minister swiftly dismissed the claim, “You are too small for me to report you to the President. Who are you for me to report you?”
The fiery exchange continued as Oseni pressed further on the cost-per-kilometre question on the project.
“My question still persists as regards the per kilometre. You cannot tell me that we don’t have the right to know the cost per kilometre even if it’s an undulating landscape. Give us all the facts and details of the cost per kilometer,” Oseni demanded.
Umahi, visibly irritated, fired back, “Asking me to give the cost per kilometre is nonsensical. You don’t understand anything. I am a professor in this field.”
Oseni retorted, “What university gave you professorship in this field? I didn’t know you were Professor Umahi, Minister. What university gave you professorship in engineering?”
“I am a professor in practice,” Umahi replied. “I understand engineering very well, and you have no knowledge of what you are asking me.”
When the conversation shifted back to the Winhomes Estate court case, Oseni queried why Umahi was discussing a matter already before the court.
“Isn’t it interesting that as somebody who has been a governor of a state, you know the law? A case is in court, and yet you are talking about its details. You denied it was in court, but now you’ve admitted it. Isn’t it better to let the courts handle it?” Oseni asked.
The minister responded, “In certain cases in court, you do a no-case submission. Rufai does not know what he is saying, and I think he should learn how to talk.”
As tensions flared, Oseni countered: “Minister, you’ve spoken for 10 minutes. Allow me to speak. If you can just keep quiet and allow me to speak.”
Umahi interjected again: “You don’t know what you are speaking about. You don’t know your profession.”
“I think you should let the world see you for who you are,” Oseni shot back.
Umahi said, “This guy makes me laugh at his very high level of ignorance,” while he went on to answer the questions.
