In a rare and pointed warning, Minister of Works David Umahi has declared that communities in Akwa Ibom risk losing their share of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway if they fail to cooperate with the federal government and its contractors.
Speaking during the flag-off of the 65km Akwa Ibom section of the coastal highway in Nsit Atai, Umahi cautioned that the federal government will not hesitate to reroute or relocate infrastructure projects to more cooperative regions if met with obstruction or agitation.
“Any community that does not cooperate with the contractor, Hitech – we will move the road, and then, we will come and beg you to enter the road later. That’s the policy of the federal government,” Umahi warned.
Flagging off the project, President Bola Tinubu, represented by Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom State, described the coastal highway project as a cornerstone of his Renewed Hope Agenda and a symbol of national unity.
“This road is not just about transport, it is about economic revival, national integration, and long-term transformation. Great leaders don’t play politics with enduring value,” he said.
Speaking in his own capacity, Governor Umo Eno lauded the inclusion of Akwa Ibom in the project, describing it as “audacious” and “transformational.”
In a notable political endorsement, Governor Eno mowed that President Tinubu must be allowed to complete his eight years to finish the good works he started in Nigeria.
“President Tinubu must complete eight years. He cannot start this work and abandon it. Somebody else may not finish it,” he said
