The federal government has said it is withholding payment of compensation to affected property owners from Kilometre Seven on the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project, due to alteration to the plan.

The Minister of Works, David Umahi, said this when he inspected ongoing works on Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway and other road projects on the Lekki Free Trade Zone, Dangote Tax Credit Route and Eleko, among other axis, at the weekend in Lagos.

The minister said that to resolve most of the compensation issues where a lot of critical infrastructure was affected, the government had reduced the entire corridor from Phase Two, Section Two of the coastal route, to effective pavements of 55km, including the 10 train tracks.

He said that the government had released about N10 billion so far in compensation, according to a report by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

Umahi said: "We are going to withhold compensation payment from Kilometre Seven because we have re-routed some of the sections, like the white sand beach.

"I know the indigenes have been praying very well. I think God has answered their prayers because we have also compressed the corridor to 55 effective pavements with 10 train tracks. We reduced the 10 tracks from 55 to 20, and we are taking it back also towards the beginning of this project."

The minister said that after review, payment of the compensation would continue.

"For Section Two, we are going to have brand new enumerators so that they will also give us their opinions. It is going to be very, very fast," the minister said.