The National Youth Wing of the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) has called on President Bola Tinubu to halt plans to redirect the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway inland, warning that the move would deprive oil-producing coastal communities of the benefits of the project.

The group made its position known at a press conference in Benin City on Tuesday, with its National Youth Leader, DonBen Donyegha, urging the Federal Government to retain the highway’s original coastal route.

Donyegha argued that the proposed realignment undermined the purpose of the project, which was intended to connect coastal communities across the Niger Delta and improve access to areas that have hosted oil exploration for decades.

He said communities in the region had continued to contend with pollution, gas flaring and inadequate development despite their contribution to the nation’s economy. He maintained that improving the existing East-West Road could complement the coastal highway but should not replace its original route.

The PANDEF youth leader warned that excluding affected communities could provoke resentment and threaten the relative peace in the Niger Delta, with possible political implications ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The group called for the reversal of the rerouting directive, consultations with host communities and state governments, and assurances that all littoral communities initially covered by the project would retain access to a dedicated coastal road.

According to BusinessDay, Works Minister Dave Umahi had said Tinubu directed that the coastal highway should follow the existing East-West Road rather than proceed with new alignments. Umahi reportedly cited difficult terrain, deep pits and construction costs in parts of Ogun and Ondo states as reasons for the proposed adjustment.