The Minister of Works, Sen. Dave Umahi, says a 50-year-old refuse dump, over 10 metres deep, delayed the construction of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway for more than four months.
Umahi made this known on Monday during an inspection of the project in Lagos, where he was accompanied by opposition figures including Chief Segun Showunmi, a PDP chieftain, and some civil society activists.
The minister explained that construction challenges began from Kilometre Zero, where Landmark Beach infrastructure and other properties were encountered.
“As a responsible ministry, we varied the design. The implication is that we left the coast and came to a new alignment not originally designed for the project,” Umahi said.
He clarified that Landmark Beach itself was never demolished, only shanties around the facility. To preserve the beach, the six-lane highway was split into three lanes on either side.
“We also encountered a refuse dump over 50 years old, more than 10 metres deep and spanning two kilometres. This forced us to stop work for over four months. Tackling it alone cost the Federal Government ₦15 billion,” he added.
Umahi directed that all related videos and drawings be documented as evidence of the additional works.
Also speaking, the Managing Director of Hitech Construction Company Ltd., Mr. Dany Abboud, said the road was diverted at Kilometre 2.7 and rejoined at Kilometre 5 to avoid demolition of Landmark Beach and nearby properties.
“We encountered huge waste deposits, especially at Kilometre 4 and Kilometre 9. We had to excavate deeply and replace the waste with sand,” Abboud said.
