• Accuses Tinubu’s administration of lack of transparency

Former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, has declared that he has been vindicated on the actual cost per kilometre of the ongoing Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway, by the recent disclosure of the minister of Works, Engineer Dave Umahi.

The former presidential candidate, in a statement entitled: ‘Coastal Highway cost scandal: Atiku Abubakar vindicated,’ declared that the recent revelation by the Works minister reinforced his earlier alarm that “the project’s cost was inflated to an outrageous N8 billion per kilometre.”

The statement signed by Phrank Shaibu, special assistant on Public Communication to the former vice president accused the Tinubu administration of lack of transparency and further demanded for actual financiers of the project.

The statement partly read: “When the Tinubu administration unveiled the Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway project, former vice president Atiku Abubakar raised the alarm that the project’s cost was inflated to an outrageous N8 billion per kilometre.

“At the time, the minister of Works, David Umahi, dismissed the claim, insisting in a 2024 interview that: “You will find out that our cost is N4 billion instead of the N8 billion claimed by the former vice president.”

“However, the same minister has now done a volte face and admitted that the actual cost is indeed closer to N8 billion per kilometre — precisely what Atiku warned Nigerians about.

“This admission not only vindicates the former vice president’s position but also exposes the Tinubu administration’s lack of transparency in managing one of the most expensive infrastructure projects in Nigeria’s history.

“Atiku had earlier questioned both the cost structure and financing model of the coastal highway, describing it as opaque, inflated, and suspiciously designed to benefit vested interests rather than the Nigerian people.

“Now, even by the minister’s own account, the Federal Government’s commitment is only 15 per cent–30 per cent of the total project cost, meaning the bulk of the estimated $11 billion would supposedly be sourced by the contractor.

“This raises fundamental questions like: Who are the actual financiers? What sovereign guarantees underpin this arrangement? How did a project initially presented as cost-efficient balloon to Atiku’s projected figure?

“This development reinforces Atiku Abubakar’s consistent call for due process, competitive bidding, and transparency in all major public projects. Nigerians deserve openness, not contradictions and concealed deals.” (Nigerian Tribune)