The Minister of Works, David Umahi, is trading words with the former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar on how much the federal government is spending on the construction of the Lagos-Calabar coastal highway.
Umahi is faulting the claim by Atiku that the federal government spends 8 billion naira per kilometer of road saying the actual cost is N4bn per kilometers against the claim by the former VP.
The minister who spoke on a live television programme dismissed claims that the project didn’t follow the due procurement process, stating that the contract was awarded on a counter-funding basis and not on a Public-Private Partnership as widely claimed.
He explained that despite the soaring costs of materials in the construction industry due to commodity price inflation and supply chain disruptions, the ministry is committed to prudence, promising to reveal the true cost.
Umahi confirmed that the project would be completed within eight years, stating that with the use of concrete pavement on the four-lane carriageway, the project costs N4bn per km and explained that although N1.06tn was appropriated, the full amount had not been disbursed.
Atiku Abubakar who was the presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party in the 2023 general election, had questioned the decision of the Tinubu administration to award the contract to Gilbert Chagoury’s Hitech without competitive bidding telling the president to disclose the full cost of the Lagos-Calabar highway project.