‘Indigenous Contractors Owed N3.7trn’

The national president, All Indigenous Contractors Association of Nigeria, Jackson Ifeanyi has said contrary to announcements, local contractors are being owed despite receiving loans to execute road projects.

He disclosed that indigenous contractors were owed N3.7 tillion for jobs done and certified.

He rated the performance of the current administration as “poor” in terms of delivering road infrastructure.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on assumption of office inherited 2,600 road projects worth over N13 trn in 2023.

The administration awarded 260 palliative road projects at the sum of N208Bn to cushion the effects of bad roads and ease transportation goods and services across the country

Early, this year indigenous contractors protested non payments for jobs done and the President directed that their monies but paid.

However, several months after, Mr Jackson said “Contractors have not been paid regularly like they used to be and you don’t expect people that go out there to get funds from banks, financial institutions, invest the first year. He came in 2023.

And that 2023, the budget, which is between him and late President Buhari, that 2023, you know, it was difficult for him to even pay contractors and finish their project that year. Then his first budget was 2024.

The budget that he signed himself. 2024 budget, contractors, you know, completed almost all jobs apart from his legacy project,”
According to Jackson, aside legacy projects of the President, every other project has been suffering financial input. “Every other project has been lacking financial input. So there are several projects, but financial commitment has always been the challenge,”.

He revealed that the government was owing indigenous contractors over 3.7 trillion.

“What this government has been doing, they will borrow in the name of paying contractors, but they don’t pay. The last time we took protests to the National Assembly, they borrowed about 1.16 trillion to pay contractors. They didn’t pay. They will borrow in the name of paying contractors, at the end of the day, I don’t know if they divert the money or use money for something else. That’s been a continuous issue,”

He called complete payment of cleared certificates as against the 5 percent payment being done by the government a better and organised government.

According to him, those who completed projects worth 100 million were promised 30 percent payment but only received 5 percent.

“You completed your project, at the end of the day, the government has said what they will now do is to pay 30% of that 100%, which means if you’re giving 100 million projects, they will not pay you 30 million instead of 100 million because they have completed the project. What they’re supposed to do is to pay 100 million, probably 100 million. You might be having a profit of 10 to 15 million in each.

They now went to the National Assembly, to amend the law. What they will do is they will pay 30% of 2025 projects. Then they will take the remaining 70% to 2026 capital projects,”

He lamented that almost all indigenous contractors have completed their jobs but yet to receive payment despite borrowing from banks to fund them.

“Now, if you collect interest of, let me say, 25 to 30% interest from normal banks, you will pay to finish your job within a month, within four weeks, and you will get paid within the next six or eight weeks. As we speak now, most contractors have not received their payments. That 30% that they said they would pay for 2025 capital projects, they will take the remaining 70% to 2026. What they are doing is that, instead of paying even the full 30% of the 2025, what they are now doing is that, instead of the 100 million they will give to you, that 30% that they agreed that they went to amend the law in the National Assembly, which is 30 million, they will now give you 30% of that 30 million (sick).

“Which means they will be giving you about 9 million or so, or less. This is serious. So, we are, in fact, contractors are into financial mess,” .

He lamented further that local contractors are dying daily due to financial stress.
“Contractors are dying, they are dying by the day,”.

He explained that only a selected projects that are receiving funding in which he said local contractors are not beneficiaries.

However, when contacted, the Director Press at the Ministry of Works, Mohammed Ahmed declined comment.

He rather asked the reporter to direct such inquiries to the Ministry of Finance and office of accountant general of the federation.