Diri counters Donald Duke, says Lagos-Calabar coastal highway buildable

Bayelsa State Governor Douye Diri has faulted former Cross River State Governor Donald Duke’s claim that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway is unbuildable because of the swampy terrain in the Niger Delta, citing roads and bridges constructed in similar conditions in his state.

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Mr Diri, in a statement issued by his spokesperson, Daniel Alabrah, and shared on Wednesday by the Bayelsa State Government’s new media platform, said Mr Duke’s criticism did not reflect developments in infrastructure construction in the region.

Mr Duke who is the presidential candidate for the Peoples Redemption Party in the 2027 general elections, described the proposed highway as unbuildable in an interview on Arise News, arguing that the swampy terrain in Bayelsa would make its construction difficult and require numerous bridges.

“The Lagos-Calabar Road is unbuildable. You cannot even go through Bayelsa. Bayelsa is swamp. Even Yenagoa, the capital, is swamp. You will probably have to build about 100 or 200 bridges to go through those swamps,” the former governor said.

But Mr Diri argued that his administration had demonstrated the feasibility of constructing roads and bridges across the state’s difficult terrain.

“I have seen the trending video clip of the former Governor of Cross River State, Donald Duke, on an Arise Television programme.

“To say the least, I feel disappointed that former Governor Duke, who is from our region, made such a comment. Clearly, he is not abreast of current developments in road construction and infrastructure development in our state,” Mr Diri said.

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He suggested that Mr Duke’s criticism might have been politically motivated, saying the former governor had failed to consider the project’s importance to the Niger Delta.

“In Bayelsa, we have successfully constructed dual carriage roads and bridges in similar terrain and our state is better for it,” he said.

Mr Diri cited the Nembe-Brass Road, the Sagbama-Ekeremor-Agge Road and the Yenagoa-Oporoma Road as examples of major road projects traversing swampy terrain across the state’s three senatorial districts.

He also cited the 630-metre bridge across River Nun at Angiama community in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area, describing it as one of the longest bridges in the region.

The governor further referenced the dualised roads in New Yenagoa City and Glory Drive Phases One, Two and Three as evidence that road construction was possible in the state’s swamp and forest environments.

“Yenagoa is not what Duke described it. So, he is wrong. The Lagos-Calabar coastal road is buildable and possible,” he said.

The Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway is a 750-kilometre federal government project designed to traverse nine coastal states: Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Edo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River.

Mr Diri said the project was critical to unlocking economic opportunities and accelerating development in communities along its route, particularly riverine communities that have long faced infrastructure challenges.

READ ALSO: Niger Delta Games: Governor Diri charges Team Bayelsa to defend title

He added that the highway was important to the Ijaw people, noting that the Ijaw National Congress had advocated such a project since its establishment in the 1990s.

According to the governor, successive federal administrations had received demands for the project before President Bola Tinubu’s government commenced it.

Mr Diri also said his decision to join the ruling All Progressives Congress is because the interests of his people should take precedence over partisan considerations.

He cautioned politicians against politicising development projects during election seasons, arguing that the consequences of such disputes were often borne by the same citizens whose votes they sought.