Members of the All Indigenous Contractors Association of Nigeria on Tuesday stormed the Federal Ministry of Finance, blocking both main entrances as they demanded the payment of what they described as long-overdue debts for completed government projects.
The protesters, led by the association’s National Secretary, Babatunde Seun-Oyeniyi, accused the Federal Government of repeatedly shifting its position and reneging on commitments made during earlier engagements.
Speaking to journalists at the ministry’s entrance, Oyeniyi said the contractors were owed over N500 billion for projects that had already been completed and commissioned, adding that repeated assurances had failed to translate into actual payments.
“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 said. “But nothing has happened since then.”
According to him, several follow-up meetings with the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, also yielded no tangible outcome.
“They have not responded to our request. In fact, more than six times we have come here. Last week, we were here throughout the night before the Minister of Finance came,” he added.
Oyeniyi further revealed that the minister had reportedly indicated that about N150 billion was available for payment, yet disbursement has remained stalled.
“Even from the last conversation we had, we told him that for now, you said you have up to N150bn to pay all indigenous contractors. We don’t know why it is causing delays,” he said.
He claimed that while payment warrants had been sighted, no actual funds had been released.
“Specifically, when we collate, they are owing more than N500bn for all indigenous contractors. We only see warrants; there is no cash back,” he said.
The contractors also accused government officials of attempting to defer the payments to the next fiscal cycle.
“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,” Oyeniyi alleged.
He further disclosed that the minister had referred the contractors back to the National Assembly, which had previously intervened in the matter.
The renewed protest caused disruption at the ministry, leaving staff and visitors stranded as demonstrators blocked the two main gates.
Placards carried by the protesters bore messages such as: “Banks no longer have confidence in sponsoring government projects,” “Many contractors have lost their lives through suicide,” “Payment delays is fraud not just injustice,” and “You are killing small businesses, pay what you owe.”
Others chanted, “Na our money we need o, we don’t need anything, Wale Edun pay us, Tinubu pay us.”
The standoff highlights rising tensions between indigenous contractors and the Federal Government. In November, the House of Representatives suspended plenary for one week after contractors stormed the National Assembly, accusing the government of failing to release funds captured in the 2024 and 2025 budgets.
As of Tuesday evening, the Federal Ministry of Finance had yet to issue an official statement, while ministry officials declined to comment on the protest.
