By Ameh George
The National Youth Wing of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) has warned the Federal Government that the diversion of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway from its original coastal alignment could have political consequences for the administration in the 2027 elections.
The youth wing stated this at a press conference in Benin City on Tuesday, October 20, 2026.
DonBen Donyegha, National Youth Leader of PANDEF, said the Federal Government’s announcement to redesign and reroute the coastal highway was not an engineering adjustment but a fundamental betrayal of the project’s purpose and the littoral oil-bearing communities whose lands generate the bulk of Nigeria’s wealth.
Donyegha, who rejected the Federal Government’s plan, said failure to reverse the decision could trigger avoidable reactions from youths and communities across the Niger Delta.
He added that such reactions could undermine the hard-won peace and security in the region and have political consequences for the administration’s electoral prospects in the 2027 elections.
He noted that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway was conceived and presented as a transformative coastal artery linking Lagos through the littoral states and communities of the Niger Delta to Calabar.
The PANDEF youth leader explained that the littoral states and communities along the route were the same riverine and coastal communities that had hosted oil production for decades while enduring pollution, gas flaring and underdevelopment.
While noting that the region continued to supply the resources sustaining the Nigerian economy, he said rerouting the project inland through the East-West Road, which he described as chronically neglected, was contrary to the original promise and the demands of justice.
According to him, the East-West Road had symbolised neglect and broken promises for decades. He said upgrading sections of the road was welcome as a separate and complementary project.
“It cannot be used as a substitute that effectively bypasses the coastal communities this signature project was meant to open up.
“The oil-bearing communities of the Niger Delta are watching. They will not accept being written out of a project built on the wealth extracted from their land, nor will they continue to beg cap in hand for their rightful share.
“We call on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to intervene personally, reverse the diversion and restore the original coastal vision of the Lagos-Calabar Highway.
“We stand ready for constructive dialogue, but we will not be silent while our communities are once again sidelined,” he said.
Donyegha also urged President Tinubu not to fall prey to what he described as latent forces within his administration seeking to use the project to fulfil a long-standing desire to oppress the littoral states.
He called for the immediate cancellation of the directive to divert the highway onto the East-West Road through Ondo State and a full return to the original coastal alignment across all affected sections.
The group also demanded transparent and documented engagement with host communities, state governments and regional stakeholders before any further major realignment decisions.
It further called for public confirmation that every littoral oil-bearing community originally intended to benefit from the highway would still be served by a proper coastal route rather than being left to depend on an upgraded inland road that had failed them for years.
The New National Star reports that the Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, had publicly quoted President Tinubu as directing: “Divert, do not do any new alignments. Pass the coastal highway through the existing East-West road.”
Umahi reportedly justified the proposed change by citing difficult terrain, deep pits and cost considerations in sections covering parts of Ogun and Ondo states.
The New National Star reports that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project has generated significant controversies surrounding its route realignment, massive financial cost, lack of competitive bidding, and environmental impacts.
The Minister of Works David Umahi announced a detour shifting portions of the route from Ondo State inland through Edo State to connect with the existing East-West Road. Critics, including Senior Advocate of Nigeria Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa and the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), argued that moving the highway inland sidelines coastal settlements in Ondo, Delta, Bayelsa, and Rivers states, defeating the purpose of a true shoreline corridor.
While the Presidency and Minister Umahi insisted the overarching 750-kilometre project remains intact and that the changes are technical adjustments to bypass deep swampy pits and flood-prone terrain, public pushback and demands for transparent designs persist.
The project is estimated to cost around ₦15 trillion to $11 billion, with the first 47.47-kilometre phase valued at ₦1.067 trillion, amounting to ₦7.5 billion per kilometer. Critics and figures like former Cross River governor Donald Duke have questioned whether the country can afford such a capital-intensive project amid pressing economic hardships, while Umahi maintains that the pricing complies with international standards.
The New National Star reports that the contract was awarded to Hitech Construction Company without a competitive bidding. Critics frequently cite the opacity surrounding the full design disclosures, environmental impact assessments (EIA), and cost-benefit breakdowns.
Early backlash erupted over the demolition of commercial and private properties along the right-of-way in Lagos, most notably the partial removal of structures at Landmark Beach Resort, which severely impacted private-sector jobs and businesses before compensation disputes arose.
Following warnings from southern groups that Tinubu risked losing political goodwill, the Presidency disowned claims of a bypass, insisting the entire coastal highway will still be constructed as originally designed.
The staggering financial scale of the highway has drawn persistent criticism from opposition figures, public analysts, and civil society groups. Critics have questioned the massive ₦15 trillion price tag. At roughly ₦7.5 billion per kilometre for its initial phase, many question whether Nigeria can afford such an outlay. Though promoted partly under a Build, Operate, and Transfer (BOT) framework, the significant upfront and ongoing funding commitments required from the federal budget have raised transparency red flags.
Engineering experts and environmental advocates argue that the project was hastily conceived without proper foundational studies.
The construction initially kicked off without a completed, comprehensive Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), violating environmental regulatory standards.
High-profile critics, including former Cross River State Governor Donald Duke, have pointed out that constructing a highway through wet littoral corridors, deep peat soils, and marshy mangrove swamps requires massive, cost-prohibitive bridges and shoreline protections that may not be structurally sustainable against marine inundation.
Local communities and legal practitioners have noted a severe lack of synergy between the federal government and the benefiting communities. While some structural compensation has been paid, the highway’s construction has disrupted and destroyed small-scale fish ponds, farmlands, and coastal resources that local populations depend on for their daily survival.
A broader public debate centers on whether a new coastal superhighway should take priority over fixing Nigeria’s existing infrastructure. Critics argue that the resources would yield a better return if redirected toward reconstructing broken internal trade networks, or funding critical sectors like electricity, healthcare, and education.
