Minister Umahi Challenges Governor Makinde to Engineering Debate Over Coastal Highway Remarks

Minister Umahi has challenged Governor Makinde to Engineering Debate over Coastal Highway Remarks.

NewsOnline Nigeria reports that the Minister of Works, Engr. David Umahi, has called on Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde to withdraw his recent comment accusing him of “dancing around figures” during a television interview—or face him in a public debate on engineering and road construction.

This Nigeria news platform understands that Umahi issued the challenge on Saturday while inspecting the reconstruction of the Keffi Bridge and the Keffi-Oweto-Otukpo Road, reacting to Governor Makinde’s remarks following his heated exchange with Arise News anchor Rufai Oseni during an interview on the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project.

Governor Makinde had said the minister appeared evasive when pressed to disclose the cost per kilometre of the coastal highway during the live broadcast.

Responding, Umahi said Makinde’s statement was misleading and demanded an immediate retraction.

“When I heard what my brother and friend, Governor Makinde, said, I decided not to join issues with him,” Umahi said. “I think he is an electrical engineer—this is road construction, elect-elect no reach there. I’m his senior both in governance and in engineering practice. Anything he doesn’t understand, he should call me to explain. But he should withdraw that statement that I am dancing around figures. If he insists, he should come for a public debate, and that is very important.”

The minister went on to clarify that there was no ambiguity in the project’s cost per kilometre, explaining that costs could be expressed either as estimated costs, which allow for variance, or average costs, which are definitive.

Umahi also reaffirmed his academic and professional credentials, noting that the Nigerian Universities Commission (NUC) had recognised his title as a Professor of Engineering in Practice.

He added, “When someone without technical knowledge questions what cost per kilometre means, I’m glad that even AI confirmed exactly what I explained. You can become a professor through practical experience, and I believe God has made me one in the field of engineering practice.”