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‘Stop Being Wicked…Pay Our Money’ — COVID-19 Contractors March To FCT Minister’s Office

Angry contractors that provided COVID-19 medical kits and items to the Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, have staged a peaceful protest at the FCT Minister’s office over non-payment of monies owed for almost three years.

The protesters occupied and barricaded the entrance to the FCT secretariat in Area 11 while calling on the FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Musa Bello, to pay up.

During the protest, they carried placards with different inscriptions, such as: ‘Dear Minister, put an end to this wickedness, pay COVID-19 contractors, their money is close to three years already’; ‘We are tired of fake promises,’ and ‘we need our money now,’ among others.

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Speaking to reporters, Micheal Ewoma, one of the contractors accused the FCTA management of reneging on the agreement of prompt payment after three years of supplies.

Ewoma said: “It may interest you to know that by March 2023 it will be three years the FCTA is owing us our money. Considering the politics going on presently, we do not want to be tied to nonpayment because of the electioneering period we are appealing to the government to pay us the money, because a lot of people are in debt and our staff has not been paid salaries for months.

“The FCTA management having promised after we consulted with them severally have failed to honour all agreements with COVID-19 contractors. This is almost three years running and nothing has been done”.

According to him, it became imperative for them to hold a peaceful protest in FCTA to demand the immediate full payment of their monies owed for the supply of various medical equipment and items at the advent of the COVID-19 virus in 2020.

“You would recall that sometime last year 2021, we had a similar peaceful protest with the same demand which resulted in partial payment of our monies 80 percent.

“As it stands today, some of our contractors have not received a dime as payment since 2019, lots are owed 20% balance of the contract sum. The FCT Minister, Permanent Secretary as well as the Executive Secretary HHSS.

“We are demanding 100 percent payment of all the COVID-19 files without batching. FCT authority should pay up all monies within a week to the COVID-19 contractors so that we all can move on with our lives,” he said.

However, no official of the FCTA came out to address the protesting contractors regarding their demand.

COVID-19FCTAFederal Capital Territory AdministrationMicheal EwomaMuhammed Bello
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