Former Governor of Cross Rivers State, Donald Duke, has said that the Nigerian government cannot afford the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, noting that it won’t go anywhere.
While speaking on Arise TV on Tuesday night, August 4, Duke who is the Peoples Redemption Party, PRP, presidential candidate, argued that the project is unnecessary and will not go beyond Epe.
“Nigeria cannot afford the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway. I don’t think the road will go beyond Epe. And I think the road serves other purposes because I drove once on the road, and all I saw was land reclamation and all that. There is already a road from Lagos to Calabar. I’ve driven from Lagos to Calabar several times. If the road is poor, fix it.
There are some expenditures we make that do not reflect the realities of our circumstances.
The amount spent on that road could be better spent providing electricity or upgrading the healthcare system.” he said
Former Cross River State Governor and Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) presidential candidate, Donald Duke, has criticised the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project, arguing that it does not align with Nigeria’s current economic realities.
Speaking during an interview on ARISE NEWS, Duke said the enormous resources being committed to the project would be better invested in critical sectors such as electricity and healthcare.
According to the former governor, Nigeria lacks the financial capacity to execute a coastal highway stretching from Lagos to Calabar, particularly given the difficult terrain in parts of the Niger Delta.
“I know the country cannot afford it. You cannot build a road on the coast from Lagos to Calabar without even going through Bayelsa. Even Yenagoa, the state capital, is a swamp. There are certain expenditures that simply do not reflect the realities of our current situation,” he said.
Duke maintained that government spending should be directed towards projects that have a more immediate impact on citizens’ welfare and economic productivity.
“The funds being spent on that project would be better utilised in providing stable electricity or improving the healthcare system,” he added.
The PRP presidential candidate stressed that Nigeria should prioritise initiatives capable of addressing pressing economic challenges rather than committing scarce resources to projects with limited immediate benefits.
He also criticised the country’s high cost of governance, calling for structural reforms aimed at reducing waste and improving efficiency in public administration.
According to Duke, Nigeria’s economic difficulties are rooted in poor governance and ineffective leadership, arguing that the country has witnessed decades of political activity without corresponding development.
“For more than 20 years, we’ve had too much politics and too little governance,” he said.
Duke, who recently emerged as the PRP’s presidential candidate for the 2027 general election, said that if elected president, his administration would prioritise productivity, judicial reforms and the appointment of a competent team to drive national development.