The presentation of a 30-kilometre segment of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway as a completed and inauguration-worthy project has drawn sharp criticism from NEFGAD, a leading public procurement advocacy group in Nigeria.
In a statement signed at the weekend by its country head of office, Mr Akingunola Omoniyi, NEFGAD said it noted with deep concerns that the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway was a 750-kilometre unbroken contract, meant to serve as a transformative infrastructure corridor across Nigeria’s coastal region.
“To inaugurate just 30 kilometres—barely 4% of the total project length—while the rest remains under construction is premature and misleading.
“We caution against the politicisation of infrastructure delivery and stress that project inauguration should reflect substantive completion and usability of the project in its entirety or at least a major functional section.
“Presenting a fraction as the whole not only misrepresents the scope of work but risks undermining public trust in government communication and performance metrics,” the organisation said.
The organisation urged the Minister of Work, David Umahi to be mindful of the kind of precedent this action sets, insisting that: “If left unchecked, this could normalize the inauguration of uncompleted or partially completed projects across the country—turning what should be moments of national progress into mere photo opportunities and political theatre.”
The group said the President should not be put under undue pressure of inaugurating unfinished projects, maintaining that government was a continum.
It said Mr Umahi should know that it was not possible for an administration to finish the business of governement to the extent of thinking that all projects initiatiated must be completed during a tenure.
It said President Tinubu himself met projects initiated by previous administrations, completed and inaugurated them.
NEFGAD called on President Bola Tinubu to demand transparency and accountability in project delivery, noting that the people deserved full value for every public infrastructure initiative—not staged ceremonies that papered over incomplete work.
“We urge the Ministry of Works to recommit to credible milestones, uphold project integrity, and ensure that future commissionings are tied to real, completed achievements—not fragments dressed up as finished products,” the statement insisted.
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