By Kingston Magare 22.9.2026
Ilaje community leaders in Ondo State and their Itsekiri counterparts in Delta State have urged Nigeria’s minister of works David Umahi to stick with the original map of the Lagos-Calabar coastal highway approved by President Bola Tinubu.
They argued that Mr. Umahi’s new plan to redraw the map and move the route further inland, will cut off their communities and also add more figures to the cost of construction.
The communities said in a statement made available to the media and signed by Austin Oboroegbeyi, Dr Benson Enikuomehin, Amaechi Omagbitse and Dr Adeolu Efotan, that it was important the coastal highway maintain its original route to serve its main purpose of opening up rural communities.
“After examining all the empirical facts and circumstances, the Ilaje and Itsekiri have agreed to work together to ensure that the coastal road maintains its original route through the coastal communities,” the statement read.
“Dave Umahi’s claim as to the reason why the road cannot go through these communities is blatant falsehood, in that the cost of constructing a kilometres of road along the coastal route, which includes the Ilaje communities in Ondo State and the Itsekiri communities in Delta State, is about N4 billion to N7.5 billion, whereas the cost of rerouting the road through Umahi’s diversion and manipulation from the coast to the hinterland is a minimum of N7.5 billion to N12 billion.
“The distance from Olosunmeta to the Itsekiri axis in Delta State is between 100 and 110 kilometres. On the other hand, Umahi’s new route will cover between 170 and 190 kilometres, which will significantly increase the length of the road and its cost.
“The new route is swampy, has difficult terrain and requires numerous bridges, unlike the shorter route from Olosunmeta through Araromi, Abe-Oroyo, Ogogoro, Ugbonla, Apata, Awoye, Ugbege, Oghoye, Orere, Agogboro and Ode-Ugborodo, among other communities, along the coastline of Delta State.”
According to the community leaders, representatives from Ilaje and Itsekiri will form a tactical committee to make necessary contacts and appeal to the Federal Government to maintain the sanctity of the coastal road as envisioned by President Tinubu.
“Where possible, legal action should be embarked upon to ensure that justice, equity and fairness prevail,” the community leaders added.