The Nigerian Government will begin long-awaited payments to indigenous contractors on Monday, following a breakthrough brokered by the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Benjamin Okezie Kalu.
The agreement was reached after months of arrears triggered protests in Abuja by contractors demanding settlement of debts.
Acting as Chairman of the House Special Committee on Budget Implementation, Mr. Kalu convened a high-level meeting with over 80 contractors, Finance Minister Wale Edun, Accountant-General of the Federation Shamseldeen Ogunjimi, and other senior officials.
The four-hour dialogue resulted in a structured plan for the immediate disbursement of funds and a framework for systematically addressing backlogs.
Contractors welcomed the move, saying “it averted further disruption and underscored the value of constructive dialogue in resolving economic disputes.”
“First of all, I want to thank the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abass, PhD, GCON, the leadership of the House for finding me worthy to be the Chairman of Budget Implementation Committee. We met yesterday, cut down our holidays to be able to reconvene and look into this all-important matter,” Kalu said.
He confirmed that progress would be reviewed later this month.
“We had over four hours’ engagement and they left here smiling. We got the strategy in place, and we’re going to come back on the 21st of this month to review what we’ve done so far, how we’ve ticked the boxes, what needs to be done and the way forward.” he added.
Finance Minister Edun affirmed that a clear timetable for payments had been established.
“Under the leadership of Benjamin Kalu, we did hold a marathon meeting where all the issues were discussed and a timeline was put in place and a way forward was mapped out… After Friday’s holiday, the Central Bank will open again on Monday and payments will commence immediately,” Edun said.
Accountant-General Ogunjimi reinforced the commitment. “This process is ongoing. We’ve been paying contractors and we will continue to pay. From Monday, payments will start dropping.” he stated.
Leaders of the Association of Indigenous Contractors of Nigeria welcomed the resolution, commended Mr. Kalu’s intervention and pledged to suspend their protests in light of the government’s commitments.
PIAK