By| Goodluck E.Adubazi, Abuja
Minister of Works, Engr. David Umahi, has taken full responsibility for the Federal Government’s decision to adopt a special procurement process for the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, insisting that the controversial process was based on technical considerations and the unique terrain of the project.
Umahi made the clarification while appearing on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, where he was questioned on the cost of the coastal highway, procurement procedures, value for money, President Bola Tinubu’s infrastructure record and the political implications of the administration’s projects ahead of the 2027 elections.
The minister rejected allegations that the special procurement was designed to favour a company allegedly connected to people close to the President, insisting that Tinubu never instructed him to award the coastal highway project to any particular contractor.
“I take responsibility,” Umahi said repeatedly when asked who was responsible for the procurement decision.
According to him, the coastal highway is “not an ordinary project” because it traverses coastal terrain, swamps and sections affected by the ocean, requiring specialised construction techniques.
He explained that the ministry considered the experience and track record of companies capable of handling such complex engineering works before adopting the special procurement procedure.
Umahi cited the development of Eko Atlantic as an example, arguing that previous efforts by successive governments and foreign experts to address the ocean surge problem had failed until a specialised methodology was deployed.
He said the decision to engage Hitech Construction Company was therefore based on its technical capacity and track record, rather than its relationship with President Tinubu.
“The President never asked me to give [the project] to Hitech,” Umahi said, stressing that he remained accountable for decisions taken under his supervision.
The minister also dismissed concerns over the President’s alleged friendship with the owners of Hitech, maintaining that personal relationships had no bearing on the procurement process.
He explained that major procurement decisions pass through established government procedures, including scrutiny by the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP).
On the cost of the coastal highway, Umahi defended the project’s pricing, saying the terrain and extensive engineering requirements were major factors driving the cost.
He disclosed that sections of the project involved digging deep pits, removing unsuitable materials and replacing them with sharp sand to achieve proper consolidation.
According to him, some portions had to be left for as long as a year to allow natural consolidation before construction could continue.
He added that the project also involved a 25-metre corridor that had been filled to accommodate a future rail track, which he said formed part of the overall project cost.
Umahi further disclosed that the government had procured different sections of the coastal highway, including Section One, Section Two, Sections Three and Three-B, and Section Four, with additional sections under development.
He said Section Four, covering about 62 kilometres, was ongoing at approximately 30 per cent completion, while Section Five, covering about 80 kilometres in each direction, had also been secured.
The minister said President Tinubu had also approved the realignment of the coastal highway from Ondo to Edo to follow the East-West route, describing the decision as a major engineering and economic development milestone.
He explained that the realignment would allow the government to raise sections of the route above existing flood levels using sharp sand, while some bridges along the corridor could span several kilometres because of the terrain.
Umahi also defended the administration’s wider infrastructure record, rejecting the suggestion that the government had failed to complete projects initiated under its own administration.
He listed several projects across the country which he said had either been completed or were nearing completion, including sections of the Abuja road network, bridges in the South-East, the Gombe-Bauchi corridor, Shendam Bridge in Plateau State and bridges in Adamawa State.
The minister maintained that the administration should not be judged only by projects it initiated but also by how it handled inherited infrastructure projects.
He disclosed that about 80 per cent of the projects currently being undertaken by the Ministry of Works were inherited projects, while the remaining 20 per cent were initiated by the Tinubu administration.
On financing, Umahi said the administration’s major legacy projects were being implemented under an Engineering, Procurement, Construction plus Financing (EPC+F) arrangement, with the Federal Government providing about 30 per cent while external financing institutions provide the remaining 70 per cent.
He cited Deutsche Bank’s financing of part of the coastal highway project, saying the financing proposal had attracted significant scrutiny, including examination of environmental impact assessments, resettlement programmes, procurement processes and unit costs.
Umahi further linked the coastal highway with the administration’s other major infrastructure projects, including the Sokoto-Badagry Superhighway and other strategic corridors.
He said the ultimate objective was to connect the four legacy projects into an integrated national transportation network capable of moving people and goods across the country and stimulating economic activity.
Defending the Tinubu administration’s economic reforms, the minister acknowledged that Nigerians had experienced significant hardship but argued that the reforms were necessary to prevent deeper economic problems.
He questioned what Nigeria’s economic position would have been if the country had continued borrowing to finance fuel imports and maintained what he described as a distorted foreign exchange system.
According to Umahi, the reforms have come with significant pain but are ultimately intended to restore the economy and lay the foundation for prosperity.
“The reforms, they were not an easy reform. But they needed to be done to restore our nation,” he said.
