The Presidency on Wednesday dismissed claims by former Cross River State Governor Donald Duke that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway would not extend beyond Lagos State, insisting that construction has already progressed into neighbouring states.
Senior Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Media and Publicity, Temitope Ajayi, described Duke’s remarks as politically motivated and at variance with the reality on the ground.
In a post on X, Ajayi said construction on the flagship highway has already reached Ogun State, while work is simultaneously ongoing on sections of the project in Ondo and Akwa Ibom states.
According to him, political considerations often compel public figures to make claims they neither believe nor can substantiate.
“Former Governor Donald Duke, who wants to become President on the banner of an unviable political platform, has also joined the chorus of those saying the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway will not go beyond Lagos State.
“I think politics makes a lot of people say loads of what they don’t mean or believe in. They just talk for the sake of talking or because of bad politics. There is actually no sense in arguing against reality.
“While Duke was talking on TV that the Coastal Highway won’t go beyond Epe, the project has reached Ogun State, and work is going on on the Ondo and Akwa Ibom states sections of the Coastal Road,” Ajayi wrote.
Ajayi’s response followed comments by former Cross River governor Donald Duke during an interview on ARISE Television on Tuesday.
Duke, who is the presidential candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) for the 2027 election, described the 700-kilometre Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway as a misplaced national priority.
He argued that Nigeria could not afford the project at a time of mounting economic challenges, maintaining that rehabilitating the existing Lagos-Calabar highway would be more prudent than constructing a new coastal route.
Duke also expressed doubts that the project would progress beyond Epe in Lagos State, urging the Federal Government to redirect the funds to critical sectors such as electricity, healthcare and education.
The Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, inaugurated by the Tinubu administration in 2024, is designed to link Lagos with Calabar through Ogun, Ondo, Edo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers and Akwa Ibom states, with the Federal Government projecting it as a strategic infrastructure project aimed at boosting regional connectivity, trade and economic development.
