Folarin Kehinde

The federal government has shelved and diverted realignment of Lagos-calabar coastal road projects while also saving the telecommunications infrastructure and submarine cables, among others at the axis.

With the presidential directive, Telcos, MTN submarine cables, and workstations along the Okun-Ajah community axis have been saved from demolition after a thorough assessment of the EIA impact on infrastructure and business activities along the Okun-Ajah community axis.

The minister of Works, David Umahi, while addressing stakeholders meeting in Lagos on Compensation and Environmental Impact Assessment on the coastal road project informed community groups and traditional institutions in the state, particularly the Okun-Ajah community in Lagos.

Earlier, the Okun-Ajah community cried out and warned the federal and Lagos State governments over the alleged illegal variation to the Lagos-calabar coastal highway route which put six villages at the risk of demolition and also the displacement of three traditional kings within the Community if the plan was not shelved.

Umahi buttressed the need to redesign the route to save the 600 years ancestry of Okun-Ajah community, adding that, the president, out of compassion to realise the project, added human phase to save property and infrastructure of Okun-Ajah axis while applauding efforts of the president to divert alignment routes to save the communities from the ongoing demolition exercise stretching along the indigenous communities in the state.

The minister said, following the gazetted alignment, and order of the EIA assessment, over 750 houses were expected to be demolished in the old alignment while 450 houses were marked for demolition in the new alignment after thorough assessment of the project along the Okun-Ajah community axis.

Umahi also explained that the project approval followed the process and went through the Bureau of Public Procurement (BBP) after consideration by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) as prescribed by law.

Umahi said the project followed certification process and Environmental Impact Assessment Acts and lent credence to it and followed the processes involved.

Umahi noted that BPP issued a certificate of no objection on the project to the Ministry of Works in line with the Procurement Act but added that the Ministry of Works took the certificate of no objection to FEC and FEC debated and approved it.

Nigeria’s Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris has disclosed that there will be no fanfare to mark President Bola Tinubu’s one year in office.

He said there would be low-key activities to mark the anniversary.

The Minister said this on Wednesday during a World Press conference to commence “Ministerial Sectoral Updates” as part of the activities to mark President Tinubu’s one year in office.

Idris, however, emphasised that there would be no form of celebration owing to the mood of the nation.

“There won’t be any form of celebrations; there will be sectoral briefings,” he stated.

The Minister, who restated that the media remained critical stakeholders in the Nigeria project, urged the practitioners to “report responsibly and with a deep sense of patriotism to the nation.”

He stressed that press freedom comes along with responsibilities.

He added that President Tinubu, as a product of democracy, was interested in press freedom.

The Information Minister said it was in that spirit that the government was determined to keep the people informed of its policies and achievements.

While responding to a question, he, however, pleaded with the media to collaborate with the government in fighting fake news, which he said was more deadly to the nation than cancer.