The Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP) has backed the building of a 700-kilometer coastal route from Lagos to Calabar, citing it as crucial infrastructure for national growth.
Fegalo Nsuke, President of MOSOP, made the statement today while meeting with a group of Ogoni students at the MOSOP national office in Bori, the capital of the Khana local government region.
Nsuke said that the effort would improve communication, help the distribution chain, and create employment via greater economic activity generated by the road network.
“I think the road is a good initiative and it will come with a lot of economic benefits. The multiplier effects will create jobs and boost trade”
Nsuke, on the other hand, advocated for the countrywide completion of the railway network in order to boost the economy and lower the cost of commodities sourced from across the country.
“It is also important that the government pays even greater emphasis on the railway system being a cheaper transportation means and effectively maintains the existing road network to reduce and possibly mitigate the bad-roads-induced losses.
While advocating for such big projects to improve communication across the country, Nsuke requested national assistance.
“We would like to see such a major road project linking Lagos to Kano, Maiduguri Sokoto and Enugu. Its impact on national unity and the economy will be profound”
“This project deserves the support of everyone and MOSOP will like to call for national support to ensure that it is successful” the MOSOP president said.
The Lagos-Calabar coastal highway project extends 700 kilometers and aims to provide a key link between Lagos and Cross River.
The project would go through the coastal states of Ogun, Ondo, Delta, Edo, Bayelsa, Rivers, and Akwa Ibom before ending in Cross River.
However, the initiative has sparked debate among the country’s top political parties in response to concerns from the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) presidential candidate.
The road project is scheduled to be finished in eight years.