It’s no longer news that the N15.6 trillion estimated for the 740km Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project embarked upon by PBAT has continued to generate interests among Nigerians because of the administration’s infirmal and odd way of engaging a non experienced contractor, Hitech Construction company to execute it which is a breach of the norm in contract awards in the country..
It will be recalled that the project was first awarded by former President Goodluck Jonathan in November 2014 for the 10-state, 22-station project to China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, CCECC at a cost of $11.97bn, before his administration ended abruptly.
Former President Jonathan could not begin the project before he lost the election but his successor, former President Muhammadu Buhari expressed his intention to begin it and announced in 2016 that the project had been renegotiated downward by $800m to $11.1bn.
In August 2021, while Buhari was on vacation, it was announced by Lai Mohammed, then information minister, that the FEC had “approved the memo for the ratification of the president’s approval for the award” of the $11.1 billion project.
Some Nigerians describe the Lago-Calabar Coastal Road project as the country’s biggest heist in its history. Others describe it as tge country’s ‘highway to poverty ‘.
It’s indeed unbelievable that while Africa’s longest highway from Cairo, Egypt to Cape Town, South Africa, stretching up to 10,288km cost only USD1.65bn, the Lagos-Calabar 740km highway is costing the government USD16bn.
Some said the contract to the company did not follow the country’s established procedure and process of advertisement, bidding and short listing, as it were among others. More so the contractor is inexperienced to handle such strategic and key infrastructure project.
Others believe that the owner of the company, Gilbert Chagoury was highly favoured because he is a long time ally of PBAT.
Among the many suspicions about this contract resulting in unending controversies around it also includes alteration of the initial plan of the project after Gilbert Chagoury’s Hitech Construction company had been awarded the contract without any competitive bidding as against the PPP approach, its high cost of N4bn per kilometre, non budgetary provision and non consultation with benefitting states among others.
Some views are that the construction firm handling this huge project, Hightech is notorious for abandoning projectsas it allegedly abandoned the 50-km Lekki-Epe Expressway despite installing two toll gates along that axis.
In his comments, Former vice president Atiku Abubakar described the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project as “wasteful and a highway to fraud.”
According to Atiku, the road project would cost N15.6 trillion ($13bn at an exchange rate of N1,200/$1), while the rail, which will pass through the road, will be costed separately.
Atiku stated: “Umahi had announced that the project would be fully funded by Hitech, and based on this, there was no competitive bidding. He (Umahi) then turned around to now say that Hitech could only raise just 6% of the money for the first phase. This smacks of deceit.”
The statement pointed out that the minister had also said the project would not be undertaken under a Public-Private Partnership, PPP, but that the government would be providing 15%-30% counterpart financing.
Atiku added: “The total budget of all 36 states of the federation for 2024 including that of the FCT, stands at N15.91 trillion. This is scandalous. Worse still, they have already awarded the contract but are still not sure of the level of the counterpart funding component of the federal government”.
“Umahi had said in September 2023 that Gilbert Chagoury’s Hitech had the money to construct the highway and that it would be PPP. Hitech was to build, operate, and transfer it back to the Nigerian government after years of tolling”, Atiku quoted Minister Umahi saying.
“It was reported by every media organization, including those owned by Tinubu. It was on the basis of this proposal that Hitech was picked. Why did Umahi then turn around to claim that it was not to be a PPP but that the government would pay 15%-30%?”
“Although the National Assembly approved N500m for the project this year, the Tinubu administration has released N1.06tn. That is more than 200 times what is in the Appropriation Act,” he added.
Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, has announced that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project is expected to take eight years to complete aligning with planned President Tinubu’s two terms in office.
Minister Dave Umahi, has projected a Return on Investment, ROI of around N1.67 trillion in 15 years on the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway corridor as its expected to boost economic activity, improve transportation, and create a more enjoyable travel experience.
There is the absolute need for Dave Umahi to come out clean on the serious controversy and conflict of interest surrounding the project.
It looks like Umahi’s excesses are becoming too much and its time PBAT checks him before it’s too late. May be he is using the opportunity PBAT offered him to drive home a point of a personal or regional agenda or even both against 2027.
He must, as a matter of urgency, talk to Nigerians to clear very critical, mysterious issues around the project.
Musa Illallah can be reached via musahk123@yahoo.com, Emeka Anyaoku Street, Abuja.
