‘Public money deserves clear plan’ — Atiku aide questions Tinubu over coastal highway

Paul Ibe, media aide to the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, Atiku Abubakar, has questioned the Tinubu administration’s planning and funding of the 750km Lagos-Calabar coastal highway, asking why construction began without a single engineering design covering the entire project.

In a post shared on X, Ibe raised the concern following Works Minister David Umahi’s explanation that the highway was being designed and costed section by section.

He said the concern was not that different sections required different designs, but whether the government had a coordinated plan, credible funding arrangements and a clear completion timeline for the entire project.

Ibe challenged the government to disclose its current cost estimate, the amount already committed and funded, and when the highway would be completed.

“Mr Minister, publish the coordinated route plan, sectional designs and costs, procurement records, environmental approvals, compensation obligations and financing arrangements,” he wrote.

He also questioned the commencement of construction under provisional environmental approval while assessments continued section by section.

Ibe said the government could not claim credit for the entire highway while offering sectional explanations when asked to account for it.

“Nigerians are not asking every kilometre to look alike. We are asking the government’s explanations to add up,” he said.

He added: “Public money deserves a clear plan—not a moving target.”

‘Public money deserves clear plan’ — Atiku aide questions Tinubu over coastal highway