Ondo Stakeholders Protest Lagos-Calabar Highway Route Diversion

Lawyers and other stakeholders from Ondo State have accused the Federal Ministry of Works of marginalising coastal communities in Ilaje Local Government Area through the alleged diversion of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway away from the state’s coastline.

The stakeholders made the allegation at a press conference in Lagos on Thursday, where they called on the Federal Government to restore what they described as the original coastal alignment of the 700-kilometre highway project.

Led by an attorney-at-law, Dr Benson Enikuomehin, the group said the alleged change in alignment had excluded several coastal communities in Ondo State from a project originally conceived to connect communities along Nigeria’s Atlantic coastline.

Among the communities said to be affected are Ugbonla, Ilowo, Ilepete, Obe-Enikanoselu, Obe-Rewoye, Ikorigho, Jinrinwo, Awoye and Igho.

The stakeholders noted that Ondo State has one of the longest coastlines among Nigeria’s coastal states, estimated at between 80 and 100 kilometres, with the Ilaje people occupying virtually the entire stretch.

Enikuomehin said the highway was initially conceived as a coastal route linking Lagos with Calabar through communities along the Atlantic shoreline.

He, however, alleged that the alignment in Ondo State had been altered under the supervision of the Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, resulting in what he described as an inland route.

According to him, the new alignment runs from Oke-Upare in Ondo State through Ovia North and Ovia West Local Government Areas of Edo State to Gelegele, before linking up with Warri in Delta State.

He alleged that the revised route was designed to accommodate Gelegele, which the stakeholders claimed was located between 10 and 20 kilometres from the coastline.

“It is not in dispute that Edo State does not have a single coastal community that abuts the sea,” Enikuomehin said, questioning the decision to divert the highway from Ondo’s coastline to an inland community.

The group also rejected the alleged justification that constructing the highway through the Ilaje coastline would be more expensive because of the difficult terrain.

The stakeholders claimed that the proposed route from Ugbonla to Escravos in Delta State would cover approximately 60 to 75 kilometres, while the alternative route through Upare, Ovia West, Gelegele and Warri would stretch between 130 and 150 kilometres.

They further estimated the cost of the Ilaje coastal route at between N240 billion and N450 billion, compared with between N970 billion and N1.5 trillion for the alleged inland detour.

However, the figures could not be independently verified.

The stakeholders also cited the 2010 Ugbo-Oghoye Road project undertaken by the Niger Delta Development Commission, saying the 40-kilometre road was awarded for N19.4 billion and demonstrated that road construction in the area was technically feasible.

Enikuomehin argued that the Federal Government had the financial and technical capacity to overcome the engineering challenges posed by the terrain.

He said the Minister of Works should not use the alleged high cost of constructing the coastal route as justification for choosing a longer alternative.

The stakeholders also described the controversy as an issue of equity and constitutional rights, alleging that the exclusion of the Ilaje communities amounted to discrimination based on ethnic group and place of origin.

They cited Section 42 of the 1999 Constitution, as amended, in support of their position.

The group questioned why the highway would maintain its coastal alignment across Lagos, Ogun, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River states but allegedly depart from the coastline upon reaching Ondo State.

“Are we to believe that the Ilaje people are being made sacrificial lambs to satisfy a particular ethnic group in Edo State?” the stakeholders asked.

The group stressed that it was not opposed to Edo State benefiting from Federal Government infrastructure projects but insisted that such development should not come at the expense of Ondo’s coastal communities.

They therefore appealed to President Bola Tinubu to intervene and order a review of the highway’s alignment.

The stakeholders said restoring the coastal route would address what they described as an injustice to the Ilaje people while preserving the economic and infrastructural objectives behind the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway.

They urged the President to urgently consider the concerns of the affected communities and redress what they described as a “monumental injustice.”

The Federal Ministry of Works and Senator Umahi were not represented at the press conference, and the allegations made by the stakeholders could not be independently verified from the information available.