By Eshioromeh Sebastian
Former Cross River State Governor and Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) presidential candidate, Donald Duke, has described Bayelsa State Governor Douye Diri as a “local champion” following the governor’s criticism of his stance on the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project.
Duke fired back at Diri during an appearance on Arise Television’s The Morning Show on Thursday, maintaining that the multi-billion-naira coastal road was not feasible given its cost and the difficult terrain it would cross.
The exchange began after Diri expressed disappointment with Duke’s earlier claim that building the highway through Bayelsa would be impracticable because of the state’s swampy terrain. The Bayelsa governor, speaking through his Chief Press Secretary, Daniel Alabrah, said Duke was out of touch with developments in the state, where his administration had constructed roads and bridges across swamps and mangroves.
“Clearly, he is not abreast of current developments in road construction and infrastructure development in our state,” Diri had said.
Responding on Thursday, Duke dismissed the governor’s defence, accusing him of viewing the project from a narrow, state-level perspective rather than considering its wider implications for Nigeria.
“And the governor of Bayelsa, if he did say so, I don’t know the fellow, but if he did say so, I think he’s just being a local champion,” Duke said.
He stressed that his South-South origin would not cloud his judgment on a project of national consequence.
“I’m from the South-South. I’m a Nigerian. South-South just happens to be where I originated from. But I’m looking at the totality of Nigeria,” he said.
Duke doubled down on his position that Nigeria lacks the financial capacity to execute the coastal highway, arguing that the government was already borrowing to fund existing infrastructure.
“It’s just not feasible. We don’t have the kind of money to do it. We’re literally borrowing to even stretch Epe stretch. We’re borrowing. We can’t do it,” he said.
He also questioned the timing of the decision to divert a section of the road to the East-West Road, wondering why the existing highway was not factored in from the outset.
“Now, they have said that they’re going to divert the road onto the East-West Highway. Weren’t they aware of the East-West Highway from get-go?” he asked.
The Bayelsa governor had earlier pushed back on Duke’s assessment, insisting that his administration had demonstrated the technical capacity to build through challenging terrain.
Diri’s media aide, Alabrah, argued that the state’s road and bridge projects across swamps and mangroves were proof that Duke’s claims were outdated.
The Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, a flagship infrastructure project of the Federal Government, has drawn mixed reactions from stakeholders, including engineers who have called for a halt to the diversion of the road.
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