The Minister of Works, David Umahi, has disclosed that 750 houses that are on the path of the Lagos-Calabal Coast Highway have been marked for demolition.
He revealed this during a meeting with stakeholders in Lagos on Thursday.
He said, “If we go by the new alignment, 490 houses would be demolished, also following the gazette alignment, 750 houses would be demolished.
“There is no change of alignment; we are following the gazetted alignment. There would, however, be realignment at Okun Ajah area of the state by 25 kilometres to avoid damaging submarine cables.”
However, landlords of affected property were displeased with the government compensation, claiming it did not match their investment.
Umahi further disclosed that President Bola Tinubu had been invited to flag off the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway.
He said, “The President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has been invited to flag off the coastal highway on Sunday, May 26, 2024.”
According to the minister, the coastal highway would boost tourism.
“The new corridor is going to have befitting tourism centres and the land is going to be made available by the relevant department of government, and Nigerians would be opportune to leverage that.
“When external funding from outside comes, it is going to reduce our inflation and strengthen the naira. So, the partnership of the Federal Government is a 30 per cent commitment, and we have not exceeded that in terms of the local funding commitment of the Federal Government,” he explained.
The minister noted that the new coastal corridor was not going to be for the benefit of Lagos alone.
Meanwhile, some property owners and residents have expressed anger over the compensation paid to them by the government, describing it as small compared to their investment in the marked properties.
According to them, the compensation is grossly inadequate and there is a need for the government to review the payment.
The President of Total Energies Staff Cooperative Society and Total Energies Staff Club, Cajetan Onu, said the compensation paid by the government was insufficient compared to the investment made on the developed property.
