President Bola Tinubu on Saturday warned property developers and landowners against building on federal infrastructure corridors and reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to enforcing urban planning regulations.
The president spoke at the inauguration of Phase 1, Section 1 of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway.
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The 750km project, which passes through Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom, and Cross River states, respectively, is designed as a six-lane carriageway within a 60-meter corridor.
Mr Tinubu stressed that the era of indiscriminate development and encroachment on public infrastructure was over.
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According to Mr Tinubu, the administration will not be disposed to paying compensation for buildings or developments that violate federal right-of-way regulations, saying, “If you build illegally, you bear the consequences.”
He urged developers, traditional leaders, and local authorities to respect existing urban development laws, noting that illegal construction not only threatens the integrity of national infrastructure but also endangers lives and undermines economic growth.
Mr Tinubu also called on Nigerians to treat public infrastructure as a shared national asset, emphasising that roads, bridges, and highways must be preserved and maintained through collective responsibility.
“These projects belong to all of us. They are not political trophies, they are lifelines for future generations. Every citizen has a role to play in keeping them safe, clean, and functional,” Mr Tinubu stated.
He appealed to communities along the coastal highway corridor to guard the infrastructure from vandalism, illegal dumping, and unauthorised modifications.
He also emphasised the importance of government collaboration with professional bodies, civil society, and local councils to enforce maintenance culture across the country.
Reflecting on the early challenges his administration faced in initiating the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project, he recalled how critics dismissed the project as a venture that was not realisable.
He said, “Many critics dismissed it as impossible, citing the unpredictable and destructive nature of the Atlantic Ocean along the Lekki-Epe-Victoria Island axis.
“We were told it couldn’t be done. Some said the Atlantic would devour us. But we stood firm. We rejected fear, and we embraced science, engineering, and courage.”
He said that through strategic coastal defences and the use of reinforced concrete pavement technology, his administration prevented what he described as a looming ecological disaster.
“A tsunami-like disaster would have washed away Ikoyi and Victoria Island. But today, we have not only tamed the ocean, we’ve turned a threat into a treasure,” he said.
According to him, the completed phase now stands as a testament to visionary leadership, resilience, and the strength of Nigerian engineering, protecting key economic and residential zones while unlocking massive economic potential along the southern corridor.
As the project continues toward completion, Mr Tinubu reiterated that every Nigerian, whether developer, engineer, community member, or public servant, had a stake in its success.
“Let us build, not destroy. Let us protect, not abuse. And let us always remember: progress is not handed to us, we must shape it together,’ he said.
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The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, commended the president’s vision and execution, describing him as a leader blessed with both “sight and vision.”
“Mr President, I can confirm once again that with this commissioning today, you have proven that whenever the National Assembly says you are doing well, we are always right.”
Mr Akpabio reaffirmed the National Assembly’s support for the president’s infrastructure agenda and lauded the coastal highway project as a “generational gift” to Nigeria’s economic and security future.
Earlier, the Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, praised President Tinubu for the work he was doing across the country and for insisting that Nigerian youth should be made to learn the new technology.
Mr Umahi said the real thing was the reinforced concrete pavement, which, according to him, can last between 50 and 100 years.
(NAN)
