Featured, Politics
Despite the importance of public policy formulation and execution in the development of any country, very little attention is paid to it in Nigeria. A recent study of the issue shows that in Nigeria, the problem is essentially of execution and continuity. And successive governments abandon inherited public policies and initiate theirs that their own successors equally abandon, thus leaving a trail of abandoned policies and their relevant projects. Perhaps, 700km coastal road may likely be a victim of this unfortunate policy challenge.
By Goddy Ikeh
OVER the years, Nigerians have paid little attention to the crisis in the country’s public policy sector and this neglect has, no doubt, contributed to hundreds of abandoned projects, especially roads, airports, seaports across the country. This leads to issues of dis-connect between the policy makers and those for whom the policies are made, resulting in lack of ownership and acceptance of the policies by the people. This development is responsible for the huge trust deficit between the government and the people.
Presently, the Lagos – Calabar Coastal Road Project is again another legacy project, which some eminent Nigerians have raised genuine concerns about the ability of the federal government to complete the project in record time and wondered if the road project should be on the priority list of the government which is battling with serious security and socioeconomic challenges.
Already, the project has been heavily criticised by many Nigerians, including the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, LP, in the 2023 elections, Peter Obi, who described it as a misplaced priority by the federal government. Obi, a former governor of Anambra State has also expressed concerns about the cost of the road project.
While acknowledging the potential benefits of the road project, Obi said that the timing and prioritisation of such a monumental venture was not right. He said in his X handle recently that the federal government should rather focus on completing the countless abandoned road projects across the country.
Obi, who listed some of the uncompleted roads across the country which are critical in advancing the economic growth and regional connectivity in the country, and wondered why the Federal Ministry of Works with a capital budget allocation of N892,461,262,656.00 for 2024 would be saddled with this legacy project despite the huge debt burden of the government. Obi therefore questioned the wisdom of embarking on another massive project that may not be completed in the next 20 or 30 years.
In addition, the former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has also frowned at this road project, describing it as a fraud. Apart from criticizing the way and manner the contract was awarded, Abubakar questioned the competence and experience of the firm executing the project.
But there have been reactions from both the federal ministry of works and the Minister of Works to the comments from Obi, Abubakar and some other Nigerians who see the project as a misplaced priority at this time that the nation is going through its worst economic crisis.
But the Minister of Works, Sen, Dave Umahi, has dismissed the criticisms and stated that the comments are “gross misrepresentation of facts and figures and a ploy to mislead Nigerians by darkening counsel without knowledge”.
According to the statement by the Special Adviser, Media, to the Minister of Works, Orji Uchenna Orji, the minister stated that Atiku doesn’t understand figures and that he would run figures for him to understand, and “he will understand how prudent the administration of President Bola Tinubu has been. He will understand how prudency is taking the centre stage in this administration,”
“The President has once queried me on the cost of on-going projects nationwide. I had to analyse every basic rate of construction materials to arrive at our unit rates. I showed it to Mr. President. He still thinks I should bring down the cost of projects.”
“He also said the road will be completed in eight years,” the statement added.
Meanwhile, the demolition of buildings on the right of way of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road began on Saturday, April 27, 2024. Before the commencement of the demolition exercise, the Federal Controller of Works in Lagos state, Korede Keisha, told journalists in Lagos on Thursday, April 25, 2024 that all those whose houses were marked for demolition to come to the ministry’s secretariat in Lagos to sort out whatever process was required by the ministry, adding that the demolition squad would move in on Saturday to begin the removal of the marked properties.
However, the Minister of Works had explained recently that the Lagos-Calabar coastal road construction would cost N4bn per kilometer and that the 700km coastal road would gulp N15 trillion and that a kilometre of the road would cost N4 billion. According to the minister, the road is designed to connect Lagos to Cross River and that it will pass through Ogun, Ondo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers and Akwa Ibom states, before culminating in Calabar in Cross River state.
In another defence of the road project, Orji said that the issues raised against the coastal road were “no doubt baseless thoughts of critics who are either bereft of the knowledge of the workings of the project initiative or they deliberately want to sacrifice the modest developmental efforts of Mr. President at the altar of their political ambitions”.
According to him, it is unthinkable that such highly placed people fail to understand the various elucidations provided by the Minister of Works, when the project was conceptualized, the various administrations that attempted but failed to carry out the project, the economic and technical considerations that gave rise to the commencement of the project under the Renewed Hope administration, the funding and procurement details and indeed the dimensions, importance, priority and propriety of the projects in the national developmental trajectory.
“For the avoidance of doubt, the Lagos- Calabar coastal highway project is being done under EPC +F. What does this type of funding entail? This is a project financing mechanism in which EPC+F contractors also arrange financing for the project. EPC+F is Engineering, Procurement and Construction plus Financing. Engineering here includes design and specification. This initiative provides a fixed price, fixed date, and transfers risks to the contractor.
“This type of funding requires only a counter- part funding from the Federal Government. Such funds are sourced by contractors where they have confidence in the economic policies of government, which essentially entails allowing the participation of the private sector in the road infrastructure development through PPP or EPC+F,” he said.
On the importance of the Lagos-Calabar coastal highway project to the economy of the nation, Orji stated that it is clear that the coastal highway, when completed, will foster national economic growth.
“Notably, all roads in the country are important as reflected by the interventions of this administration on road rehabilitation across the nation, but the coastal highway offers much more economic benefits to the nation because of its connectivity to the North and South through the existing spurs. The road, when completed, has the potential to increase Nigeria’s GDP and trigger industrialisation, create trade, enhance the transportation of goods and services, and safety of road users.
“The road is going to be the biggest super highway in Africa in terms of the structure and solidity as we all as utility value, having ten lanes with a rail track designed for concrete technology, covering 700 kilometers. It is going to attract foreign direct investment to Nigeria, and it is going to trigger economic development. It is going to develop the potential of our coastal businesses, especially at the local economic corridors, and boost tourism and marine businesses,” he said.
According to Orji, no patriotic Nigerian should discourage this kind of project where funding is substantially from the contractor. There is no doubt that Mr. President is aggressively tackling the backlogs of uncompleted road projects. In the 2023 Supplementary Budget, Mr. President approved funds for intervention on the over 260 dilapidated roads nationwide. The 2024 appropriation made provision for capital investment on our critical roads across the 6 Geo-political zones of the country.
He explained that Minister of Works has already made a great difference in the road infrastructure development roadmap of this administration through his new innovations on road construction and rehabilitation, his power of supervision, and his contract negotiation power, which is second to none in the history of the Federal Ministry of Works. He has been touring around and supervising the various ongoing projects of the federal government and the difference is already there. The people are testifying of the quality and speed of road projects being executed by the ministry.
Perhaps Ohanaeze Ndigbo has responded to the appeal by Orji who wondered why any patriotic Nigerian should not support the Lagos – Calabar coastal road project when it lauded the N15trn Lagos-Calabar coastal road project and called for national support for the project.
Recently, the apex Igbo socio-cultural orgnanisation had in a statement by its Secretary-General, Okechukwu Isiguzoro, called on the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, and other key players to focus on the positive economic impact that the project would have on Nigerians, rather than engaging in endless debates about it. Atiku had earlier alleged that the award of the Lagos-Calabar project did not adhere to the necessary standards of due process.
In the statement titled: ‘Lagos-Calabar coastal road and the political calculus’, the Ohanaeze Ndigbo said that having analysed the intricate processes underpinning the inception of the 700km coastal Lagos-Calabar route, it was confident that the project would greatly benefit the Nigerian people.
“In the realm of Nigerian politics, a seismic shift is underway, reverberating through the corridors of power and capturing the attention of astute observers.
“At the heart of this transformation lies the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road project, a monumental endeavour that, if brought to fruition, could reshape the political landscape and recalibrate the fortunes of key players.
“As Nigerians and, more specifically, Ndigbo, bear witness to the unfolding drama, questions abound regarding the enigma surrounding a coastal superhighway that promises manifold economic benefits for the poor Nigerians.
“Yet, paradoxically, this initiative has metamorphosed into a nightmare for opposition politicians, casting a shadow, especially over Atiku Abubakar’s political ambitions,” it said.
The Lagos-Calabar coastal highway project spans a distance of 700km and is aimed to establish a vital connection between Lagos and Cross River.
The project will traverse the coastal states of Ogun, Ondo, Delta, Edo, Bayelsa, Rivers, and Akwa Ibom before reaching its final destination in Cross River.
“Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the apex Igbo socio-cultural institution, has meticulously analysed the labyrinthine processes underpinning the inception of the 700km coastal Lagos-Calabar route.
“The presidential endorsement, heralding a staggering N15trn investment and the subsequent assignment of contracts to the esteemed Hi-Tech Company, compliant with legal protocols, mark the genesis of a monumental undertaking.
“The measured pace of road construction, priced at N4bn per kilometre, has sown seeds of trepidation within opposition circles, foreseeing potential disruption to the political equilibrium,” the statement added.
Despite the support of Ohanaeze Ndigbo to the coastal road project, there is an urgent need to reform the public policy sector in the three tiers of government – the federal, states and local governments. The crisis in this sector has been responsible for the abandonment of numerous roads and other legacy projects at the national and subnational levels. There are many nonviable airports in some states, while in one state in the Southeast, efforts are still on to locate the state airport in which billions of naira had been paid to contractors for the construction of the yet to be located airport.g
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-April 30, 2024 @ 16:59 GMT|
Tags: Lagos – Calabar Coastal Road Project
