Bayelsa State Governor Douye Diri has publicly criticized former Cross River State Governor and Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) 2027 presidential aspirant Donald Duke, calling him a “jester and a pretender” who is using his presidential ambition merely to seek political rehabilitation.
The fiery response, delivered in a video statement released on Thursday, October 22, 2026, by Governor Diri’s Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Daniel Alabrah, marks a dramatic escalation in the ongoing political dispute surrounding the 700-kilometer Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project.
The row began earlier in October 2026 following an appearance by Donald Duke on Arise Television. During the interview, Duke cast doubts on the engineering feasibility and economic viability of constructing the coastal highway through Bayelsa State, arguing that the region’s swampy terrain would require between 100 to 200 bridges, making the project cost-prohibitive.
When asked about initial pushback from the Bayelsa State Government, Duke dismissed Governor Diri’s standing, referring to him as “that fellow” whom he did not know and labeling him a “local champion” focusing only on his immediate vicinity.
Addressing journalists and political stakeholders at the Government House in Yenagoa on Thursday, Governor Diri rejected Duke’s comments, taking exception to the former governor’s tone toward his office and the people of Bayelsa State.
”Donald Duke, hear me well: I am not ‘that fellow.’ I am an elected, sitting governor of Bayelsa State,” Diri declared. “If you claim you don’t know me, I likewise don’t know you. Yes, I am a local champion because that is where I was raised. I was elected to serve the local people and champion their cause.”
Governor Diri further questioned Duke’s political record and current standing within his own political party, the PRP:
”You were in seat as governor of Cross River State when Bakassi was ceded out of Nigeria, and because you were not a local champion, you did nothing about it,” Diri charged. “I believe you are more of a jester and a pretender. There is not even a councillor from the PRP in your own ward, yet you pretend to be a presidential candidate so that at the end of the day, you will be rehabilitated. You continue to present yourself as a national figure without a nucleus, without a base.”
Diri advised the former governor to address the debts left behind from his tenure in Cross River State rather than criticising infrastructural development in the Niger Delta. He emphasized that despite Bayelsa’s challenging environment, his administration continues to construct major roads and bridges across difficult terrains.
Beyond his exchange with Duke, Governor Diri, who also chairs the South-South Governors’ Forum, clarified his stance regarding proposals made by the Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi.
Diri revealed that he had privately contacted Minister Umahi to reject any proposal to merge or realign the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway with the existing East-West Road.
”I privately called the Minister of Works and said, ‘Honourable Minister, that is a no, no, no for us. These are two different projects,'” Diri stated. “The reconstruction of the East-West Road should not take the place of the coastal road. For us in Bayelsa and the South-South, the coastal road must continue as designed.”
Diri commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration for initiating the coastal highway, describing it as a transformative initiative to alleviate poverty and open up coastal communities in the Niger Delta.
In a follow-up statement issued through his media office, Donald Duke stood by his engineering and economic analysis of the project. Duke maintained that highlighting the terrain challenges in Bayelsa was a realistic assessment of the costs involved, reiterating his prediction that the project would likely face severe delays or truncation due to financial constraints.
As political actors align ahead of the 2027 general elections, the public fallout highlights growing regional debate over major infrastructure allocations and federal project executions across the South-South geopolitical zone.
