The Minister of Works, Engr David Umahi has reiterated that President Bola Tinubu’s legacy projects in the road sector passes through all the six geopolitical zones of the country.
Umahi stated this during a Continuous Stakeholders’ Engagement on the Lagos – Calabar Coastal Highway in Lagos, after a 4-day working visit to project sites in some South-West states.
The minister, in a statement by the Director Information in the Ministry of Works, Mohammed Ahmed said the ongoing 750-kilometre Coastal Highway Legacy Project begins in Victoria Island, Lagos, and ends in Calabar, Cross River State.
Umahi stressed that the road passes through the South-West, South-South, as well as the South-East zones of the country.
He explained further that another project is the Abakaliki – Abuja Highway, which commences at Abakaliki, Ebonyi State in the South-East, passing through several towns and villages in the North-Central zone and terminating at Apo in the Federal Capital Territory.
The Minister added that the Ilelah (Sokoto) – Badagry (Lagos) is traversing the North-West down to the South-West zones and at the same time, the fourth is planned to take off from Akwanga in Nasarawa State to Jos, Plateau State in the North-Central zone and passing through Bauchi, and ending in Gombe State, both in the North-East zone.
Umahi applauded President Tinubu for his ingenuity in initiating this lofty projects, which he noted not as mere road and bridge infrastructures but investments in the nation’s collective future.
“These Legacy Projects should be welcomed and encouraged by all Nigerians for their economic derivatives rather than being politicised,” he admonished.
The Minister reaffirmed that the legacy projects are a testament that the President is working in all geopolitical zones.
He further revealed that some of the completed sections of the projects will be commissioned in May 2025.
Earlier in her welcome speech, the Federal Controller of Works, Lagos State, Engr. Kesha Olukorede stated that the engagement with stakeholders on the Lagos – Calabar corridor is a continuous one to resolve all thorny issues.
She further said that this meeting also gauges the citizens’ feelings about the gigantic project.
While appreciating the minister for his readiness to meet with affected communities and individuals along the corridor, she also thanked the people for the maximum cooperation given to the contractors executing the contract.
Speaking at the meeting, the Director, Highways, Bridges and Design, Engr. Bede Obiora disclosed that the purpose of the gathering was to engage stakeholders that are individually or collectively affected by the construction of the 103-kilometre alignment within Lagos State.
