Adegboruwa urges Tinubu to review Lagos-Calabar highway realignment
Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, has urged President Bola Tinubu to order an independent review of the reported realignment of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway away from coastal communities in Ondo and Delta States.
Adegboruwa, in a statement dated October 12, 2026, called on the President to ensure that the highway retains its original coastal development objectives, warning that the proposed changes could limit economic opportunities for communities whose livelihoods depend on fishing, maritime activities, agriculture and tourism.
He argued that moving sections of the highway inland could undermine the project’s purpose of connecting coastal communities and stimulating economic activities along Nigeria’s Atlantic coastline.
“The reported realignment will be nothing short of sabotage,” Adegboruwa said, expressing concern about the potential impact on communities in Ondo State, particularly Ilaje, and coastal settlements in Delta State.
The Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway was officially flagged off in May 2024 as a major infrastructure project intended to connect communities and economic centres along Nigeria’s coastline.
Adegboruwa acknowledged that the Federal Government had cited difficult terrain, weak subsoil conditions, construction costs and flood resilience as considerations in reviewing parts of the route.
However, he said such engineering challenges should be addressed through a transparent assessment of alternatives rather than decisions that could deprive coastal communities of direct access to the economic benefits of the highway.
He called for a comparative assessment of the original and revised alignments, taking into account construction and maintenance costs, journey times, environmental implications, employment opportunities and the distribution of economic benefits among affected states.
