By Onuora Aninwobodo
The Minister of Works, David Umahi, has led opposition politicians, some civil society representatives and journalists on an inspection of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project. During the tour, he addressed controversies surrounding land ownership and alleged investment claims by Wing Homes.
Speaking at Kilometre 18 of the project site, Umahi dismissed allegations that the federal government illegally encroached on private property, stressing that the Lagos State Government had already revoked and gazetted the disputed land.
“The matter has gone beyond the Ministry of Works. The Lagos State Government has revoked the land, and the court has ruled in our favour,” Umahi said. “I never called Wing Homes for any negotiation. The case is closed.”
The minister questioned Wing Homes’ claim of a $250 million investment, insisting there was no evidence of such funds being brought into the country.
He said he would write to the EFCC, DSS, and even the U.S. Embassy to investigate the claims and the alleged fraud against Nigerians in the diaspora.
“If truly $250 million was invested, where is the proof? Who paid the money and through which bank Nigerians deserve to know. Otherwise, this is a scam,”Umahi declared.
Civil society groups present, led by activist Declan Hekare, backed the minister’s call for transparency, noting that no substantial structures were found on the contested site.
“I expected to see evidence of demolished infrastructure. But what we saw today falls below expectations. If Wing Homes cannot provide more documents within two weeks, we will publicly declare our position,” Hekare said.
Umahi maintained that only about four hectares of the 12-hectare parcel were affected by the project, with the rest still intact.
He assured that the land acquisition process strictly followed the directive of the federal government and the Land Use Act, emphasizing that the highway was a national priority project that should not be stalled by “social media propaganda.”
One of the Opposition figures who joined the tour, Otunba Segun Showunmi, also called for Nigerians to separate politics from development, stressing that the coastal highway was a legacy project that would benefit future generations.
In his comment after the project inspection, Showunmi, a former spokesperson to Atiku presidential campaign organization, described the work by Hitech as a masterpiece.
He charged Nigerians to look beyond politics and support any government programme that would guarantee the future of the citizenry. He said that President Tinubu is building consensus around national development, and that as an opposition politician, he was ready to speak on behalf of Nigerians.
He noted that a takeaway conversation is that a nation at 65 must be in a hurry to get deserving infrastructural linkages like other advanced nations of the world.
Others who spoke on the method statements of the project being inspected included the Managing Director of Hitech Construction Company Ltd,Mr. Dany Abboud, the Director Highway Bridge and Design and the Federal Controller of Works.
