Duke Knocks N15trn Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, Says Nigeria Cannot Afford it

A former Cross River State governor Donald Duke, has launched a blistering attack of the Federal Government’s Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, describing the ambitious project as a costly venture that fails to reflect Nigeria’s current economic realities.

Duke is the Presidential candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party, PRP for the 2027 election,

The coastal road, with an estimated cost of over N15 trillion is one of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s signature projects.

Apart from the criticism regarding it’s huge cost to the country, environmental experts have also raised alarm over its long term effects.

Speaking during Prime Time on Arise Television, Duke argued that the proposed 750-kilometre highway represents a case of misplaced national priorities, insisting that the country should concentrate on rehabilitating existing infrastructure rather than embarking on an expensive new coastal route.
He questioned the feasibility of the project, particularly through the swampy terrain of Bayelsa State, where he said hundreds of bridges would be required to connect communities. According to him, the engineering challenges and enormous financial implications make the project difficult to justify at a time when the nation faces severe economic pressures.
Duke further expressed scepticism that the highway would ever extend beyond Epe on the Lagos corridor. Recounting a recent drive along the route, he said the most visible activity was extensive land reclamation, raising questions about the project’s ultimate objectives.
Rather than committing vast sums to the coastal highway, the former governor urged the government to channel resources toward sectors that directly improve citizens’ welfare. He identified electricity, healthcare and education as areas requiring urgent and sustained investment, arguing that they would deliver greater economic and social returns.
He lamented what he described as inadequate funding for the nation’s healthcare system and warned that continued neglect of health and education would undermine Nigeria’s long-term development.
Duke also advocated sweeping reforms to the country’s revenue generation framework, contending that excessive dependence on corporate profit taxes encourages tax avoidance. He called for a more efficient revenue administration system and broader taxation of transactions to strengthen government finances.
On economic growth, Duke maintained that affordable and reliable energy remains the foundation of industrial productivity. With Nigeria endowed with hydro, solar, gas and petroleum resources, he said government policies should focus on making energy more accessible and reasonably priced to unlock the country’s economic potential.