Contractors Shut Down Finance Ministry over Unpaid Projects
By Patience Ikpeme
Activities at the Federal Ministry of Finance in Abuja came to a halt on Tuesday as members of the Indigenous Contractors Association of Nigeria blocked the main entrance of the ministry in protest over unpaid contract fees.
The aggrieved contractors, who said they executed various federal projects, gathered at the headquarters carrying placards and chanting solidarity songs, insisting that the government must settle outstanding payments owed to their members. Their presence caused significant congestion around the ministry as vehicles were forced into a single lane due to the size of the crowd.
One of the placards at the scene read: “Don’t pay 2025 until you finish paying the 2024 budget that has been completed”, among several others calling for prompt payment.
Speaking with journalists, the General Secretary of the association, Babatunde Seun Oyeniyi, said the protesters were determined to continue the blockade until the federal government addresses their demands. According to him, engagements with the Ministry of Finance had not produced the expected results.
“They have not responded to our request. We embarked on a three-day protest starting from November 4th to 6th,” Oyeniyi said. “After the National Assembly intervened, they told us that they will sit the minister down over this matter. And we immediately stopped the protest.”
He explained that the association has repeatedly visited the ministry for follow-up, including spending an entire night at the premises last week, waiting for the Minister of Finance.
“After that, we have been in dialogue with the Minister of Finance on how he is going to pay us,” he said. “In fact, more than six times we have come here. Last week, we were here throughout the night before the Minister of Finance came.”
Oyeniyi stated that a meeting with the minister ended with an understanding that the contractors would be paid from an available sum of N150 billion. He expressed frustration that the process had stalled.
“Even from the last conversation we had, we even told him, ‘OK, for now, you said you have up to N150 billion to pay all indigenous contractors. We don’t know why it is causing delays,’” he noted.
He added that despite the government’s assurances, contractors continued to face challenges because there were no cash-backed releases to support the payment warrants already issued.
“Specifically, when we collate, they are owing more than N500 billion for all indigenous contractors. We only see warrants, there is no cash back,” he said.
Oyeniyi accused government officials of attempting to defer the payments to a future fiscal cycle, a move he said would deepen the financial distress of contractors across the country.
“The problem is that they want to put us into a backlog. They want to shift us to 2026, that 2026 they are going to pay. They will turn us into debt, and we don’t want that. We won’t leave here until we are paid,” he declared.
The protest continued as of press time, with contractors insisting they will remain at the ministry until concrete payment steps are taken.
