By Joshua Tosin Ogunsakin 
Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, has weighed in on the ongoing controversy surrounding the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, a multi-billion naira project approved by President Bola Tinubu.
In a viral video released on Friday, Makinde remarked that there was no justification for the Minister of Works, David Umahi, to be “dancing around the cost” of the coastal project.
The governor’s comments came in response to a tense live exchange earlier in the week between Umahi and Arise TV anchor, Rufai Oseni, who had pressed the minister to give a detailed cost breakdown of the project on a per-kilometre basis.
Umahi, visibly displeased by the question, dismissed the request, claiming that such analysis would be too complex for a journalist to comprehend. He defended his position by referring to himself as a “professor of practice in engineering,” explaining that the cost per kilometre could not be uniform.
According to Umahi:
“These are elementary questions. And it makes no sense (sic). A process is ongoing, payment has been made, and you are saying, ‘how has this money been utilised?’ The money is meant for the project, and it will be paid according to the work done.
“When a certificate is generated, and it is approved through a process in the Ministry of Works, it will then be given to the funders, who will, in turn, check if the works were done. How can you be asking for cost of kilometre? The prices are different. The next kilometre is different from the next kilometre.
“Keep quiet and stop saying what you don’t know. I’m a professor in this field. You don’t understand anything. I understand engineering very well. You have no knowledge of what you ask. You have no knowledge of what you’re asking.”
In response, Oseni stood his ground, replying:
“Minister, it’s alright, keep dignifying yourself, and let the world know who you truly are.”
Governor Makinde, however, came to the journalist’s defense, stating that Umahi should have provided at least an average cost rather than evading the question.
He said:
“They asked a minister how much is the coastal road is, and then you (Umahi) are dancing around and going to say that no, the next kilometre is different from the next kilometres. Then what is the average cost?
“When we did the Oyo to Iseyin road then, it was about N9.99 billion, almost N10 billion. About 34 or 35 kilometres, average cost is about N238 million per kilometre.
“But when we did Iseyin to Ogbomoso, that was 76 kilometres, it was about N43 billion, average cost is about N500 million per kilometre. And we had two bridges, one over the Ogun river and then one at Ogbomoso end.”
The Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, a 700-kilometre project stretching across nine states with additional routes connecting northern regions, was formally launched last year.
At the time, Minister Umahi announced the commencement of the first phase — a 47.47-kilometre dual carriageway — which was awarded to Hitech Construction Company Limited and is being built with concrete pavement.
A statement released by Umahi’s Special Adviser on Media, Uchenna Orji, noted that the minister, during the handover ceremony, was accompanied by Mrs. O. I. Kesha, the Federal Controller of Works in Lagos State.
Umahi reportedly stressed that all contractors must deliver projects promptly, warning that the government would not entertain cost variations caused by delays or slow execution once funds had been released.