Ben Murray-Bruce Defends Lagos-Calabar Coastal Road as Donald Duke Questions Feasibility

Former Nigerian senator Ben Murray-Bruce has challenged Donald Duke, former governor of Cross River State and Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) presidential candidate for the 2027 election, over the feasibility of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway, in a public exchange on Friday, 16 October 2026, after Duke questioned whether the proposed route through Bayelsa State’s swampy terrain could be built.

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In a post on X, Murray-Bruce recalled travelling along the coastline with Duke several years ago and said the former governor had praised the vision behind the road.

The recollection added a personal dimension to an increasingly pointed debate over one of President Bola Tinubu’s flagship infrastructure projects.

“My dear brother Donald Duke, some years ago, you and I travelled along the stretch of the coastline where this road now runs, and I clearly remember your praise for the vision behind it,” Murray-Bruce wrote, adding that Duke’s recent comments had surprised him.

The former senator acknowledged that the highway would be expensive but argued that its potential long-term benefits justified serious investment.

He also defended the Federal Government’s commitment to the project, disputing suggestions that funding was inadequate and praising the standard of construction.

“There is no funding shortfall. The work is progressing, and the quality of construction is second to none,” Murray-Bruce said. His remarks were a firm endorsement of the administration’s infrastructure ambitions, although his assurances about funding were not accompanied in the post by independently verifiable financial records.

The exchange follows Duke’s appearance on Arise Television, where the former Cross River governor questioned the technical practicality of taking the highway through Bayelsa, a state characterised by extensive wetlands, rivers and swampy ground.

“The Lagos-Calabar Road is unbuildable. You cannot even go through Bayelsa. Bayelsa is swamp,” Duke said, estimating that the route could require between 100 and 200 bridges to cross the difficult terrain.

Duke has also questioned whether building a new coastal highway is the best use of public funds when an existing road connects Lagos and Calabar.

He has argued that the government should consider repairing and upgrading existing infrastructure, rather than committing substantial resources to a new corridor.

In a subsequent response reported by THISDAY, Duke maintained that evidence of roads built in swampy areas did not settle the broader questions of engineering requirements, affordability, financing and national priorities.

He also cited comments from Works Minister David Umahi about difficult ground conditions and the redesign of some sections as support for his concerns.

Bayelsa State Governor Douye Diri has taken a different position, rejecting Duke’s assessment and pointing to infrastructure already built across difficult terrain in the Niger Delta.

Diri cited roads and bridges constructed in swampy areas, including the Nembe-Brass, Sagbama-Ekeremor-Agge and Yenagoa-Oporoma corridors, as evidence that challenging ground conditions do not automatically make major road projects impossible.

Diri also referred to a 630-metre bridge across the River Nun at Angiama community in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area, arguing that the state had demonstrated the capacity to deliver significant infrastructure despite its geographical constraints. “The Lagos-Calabar coastal road is buildable and possible,” the governor said in a statement issued through his Chief Press Secretary, Daniel Alabrah.

The governor’s intervention has broadened the disagreement beyond a technical argument about wetlands.

Diri has suggested that political considerations may be influencing criticism of the project, while Duke has maintained that questions about construction challenges and public expenditure deserve substantive answers rather than being dismissed as political manoeuvring.

Murray-Bruce has also defended Diri against Duke’s description of the governor as a “local champion”, arguing that support for the highway should be understood in the context of its potential national significance.

“When Governor Douye Diri commended the road, he was not speaking as a local champion; he was speaking as a statesman who recognises infrastructure of international standard when he sees it,” Murray-Bruce wrote.

The highway is planned as a 750-kilometre corridor linking Lagos with Calabar in Cross River State and traversing nine coastal states: Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Edo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Cross River.

The Federal Government has presented the project as a major transport investment intended to improve regional connectivity, facilitate commerce and open up communities along the coastline.

Construction has already advanced beyond the planning stage. According to the Federal Ministry of Works, a 30-kilometre completed stretch of the first section, within the 47.474-kilometre initial phase in Lagos, was temporarily opened to traffic in December 2025.

The ministry said the opening was intended to improve access while construction activities continued on the wider section.

That progress provides evidence that parts of the highway are being built, but it does not, on its own, resolve the specific engineering questions Duke has raised about the route through Bayelsa.

Nor does the existence of completed sections establish the final cost, long-term financial sustainability or overall value for money of the entire 750-kilometre project.

The distinction matters because technical feasibility and economic justification are related but separate questions.

A highway may be technically achievable while still requiring careful scrutiny of its cost, environmental consequences, maintenance requirements and benefits to the communities it is intended to serve.

For residents and businesses along the coastal corridor, the potential benefits include improved transport links, easier movement of goods and better access to markets.

However, those gains will depend on the completed road’s accessibility, its connections to existing transport networks and the extent to which surrounding communities benefit from the investment.

Murray-Bruce has urged political leaders to look beyond the immediate contest of opinions, warning against undermining nationally significant infrastructure for electoral advantage.

Drawing a comparison with the American space programme, he argued that ambitious national projects can demand considerable resources while delivering benefits that extend beyond the generation that funds them.

“When mankind went to the moon, it was neither cheap nor free. But it was necessary. So is this road,” he wrote.

With the 2027 presidential election approaching, the disagreement also highlights how major infrastructure projects can become focal points in debates over leadership, public spending and national development.

Duke’s criticism raises questions about the route’s practicality and priorities, while Murray-Bruce and Diri emphasise the potential gains of long-term investment.

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Ultimately, the case for the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway will depend not only on political conviction or past expressions of support, but also on transparent costs, credible engineering assessments, demonstrable progress and tangible benefits for the people the project is designed to serve.