…Hails Tinubu’s Massive Infrastructure Drive in South-East, Other Regions
The Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, has declared that there is no justification for renewed Biafra agitation, insisting that Nigerians are better off united as one nation under the inclusive administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Umahi made the assertion on Wednesday during a press conference at the Ministry of Works headquarters in Jabi, Abuja, where he also defended the Federal Government’s infrastructure projects and dismissed allegations of procurement violations, particularly concerning projects in the South-East.
According to the minister, the South-East is now visibly included in national development under the Tinubu administration, a development he said has eroded the basis for separatist agitation.
“There was a time the South-East was totally excluded. That has changed. Today, the president has included us, and that inclusion is real and visible,” Umahi said.
Responding to criticism by Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe over the Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway project, Umahi described the allegations as an attack on his integrity, stressing that all statutory requirements, including the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA), were duly followed.
“There are three categories of procurement recognised by the Procurement Act. I want Senator Abaribe to go and study it and come back to tell Nigerians whether there was any infringement in the Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway,” he said.
He explained that the project was openly advertised, subjected to stakeholder engagement, and certified after an internationally recognised ESIA process, adding that foreign financial institutions later adjudged it to be of high quality and even undervalued.
“The project was so credible that when it was presented to international financiers, it was oversubscribed by over 100 million dollars,” Umahi disclosed.
On project delivery, the minister said the first section of the Lagos Coastal Road has reached about 85 per cent completion and would soon be opened to traffic, while work on the second section was progressing steadily.
Highlighting federal presence in the South-East, Umahi listed key projects such as the Enugu–Onitsha Expressway, Enugu–Port Harcourt Road, Second Niger Bridge bypass, Abakaliki–Enugu Road, as well as several flyovers and bridges, noting that many are completed or at advanced stages.
He also attributed improved performance by state governments to increased federal support, citing Abia State as an example, and disclosed that President Tinubu has approved the establishment of an army training depot in Ebonyi State to strengthen security in the region.
Umahi maintained that sustained inclusion, infrastructure development and security interventions have removed the rationale for separatist agitation, urging Nigerians to embrace constructive criticism, national unity and transparency.
Also speaking, the Minister of State for Works, Bello Goronyo Esq, praised President Tinubu for what he described as “uncommon love” for national development through massive infrastructure investments across all regions.
“There is nowhere in this country where projects are not springing up. The president is deploying resources because he genuinely wants to develop this country,” Goronyo said.
He cited major road projects across the North-West, including corridors in Sokoto, Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna and Kebbi states, some of which have reached about 40 per cent completion with durable concrete pavements designed to last up to 100 years.
Goronyo also commended the president for reviving long-abandoned projects such as the Sokoto–Badagry Road, describing it as a decades-old dream realised under the current administration.
While praising security agencies for protecting construction sites, he expressed concern over damage to road infrastructure caused by illegal trading, indiscriminate parking of heavy trucks and vandalism, calling on Nigerians to help safeguard public assets.
He urged the Inspector-General of Police to reactivate the Safer Highway Patrol and appealed to citizens to appreciate what he described as unprecedented infrastructure delivery, noting that over 1,600 projects are currently ongoing nationwide.
“This is a president with a big heart to unite this country. What we are showing Nigerians is a true reflection of what is on ground,” Goronyo said.
