FG Contractors Renew Protest Over Unpaid N500bn Debt
Local contractors under the All Indigenous Contractors Association of Nigeria have again taken their protest to the Federal Ministry of Finance in Abuja, demanding the immediate payment of debts they say have been outstanding for several years. The protesters blocked both entrances to the ministry on Tuesday, causing major disruption as they insisted that the government must release the funds owed for completed and commissioned projects.
The group, led by National Secretary Babatunde Seun-Oyeniyi, accused the Federal Government of shifting its position repeatedly and failing to fulfil promises made in previous meetings. He told journalists that contractors were frustrated because the government had given multiple assurances but had not backed them up with real action. According to him, the total debt owed to indigenous contractors has now crossed N500bn, leaving many businesses in distress.
Oyeniyi explained that despite the recent involvement of the National Assembly, contractors have yet to receive any payments. He said the intervention had raised hopes that the issue would be resolved quickly, but those hopes were dashed when the government failed to follow through. He stated that contractors had paused an earlier protest as a sign of good faith, only for the Ministry of Finance to go silent afterward.
He noted that several follow-up meetings with the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, produced no concrete results. According to him, contractors have visited the ministry at least six times without receiving any official update. He recalled that they even stayed overnight at the ministry last week before the minister finally came out to address them. Oyeniyi added that the delays were confusing, especially since the minister had previously mentioned that about N150bn was already available for payment.
The protesters claimed that although payment warrants had been issued on paper, no actual funds had been released. Oyeniyi accused officials of trying to shift the payments into the 2026 fiscal year, effectively pushing contractors into a backlog they were unwilling to accept. He warned that they would not leave the ministry’s premises until the government made real payments, not just promises.
Contractors also accused the Minister of referring them back to the National Assembly, despite the legislature already stepping in earlier. As the protest intensified, ministry staff, visitors and passersby were left stranded because the two main gates were completely blocked. Many of the protesters carried placards with messages like “Banks no longer have confidence in sponsoring government projects,” “Many contractors have lost their lives through suicide,” and “You are killing small businesses, pay what you owe.”
Other banners read, “It’s a crime against humanity for the government not to pay contractors for about 360 days,” “No payment to contractor, no peace,” “Concerned contractors owed by the federal government,” and “Payment delays are fraud, not just injustice.” The protesters also chanted songs calling on Finance Minister Wale Edun and President Bola Tinubu to settle the debts, saying they needed their money to survive and sustain their businesses.
Tension between contractors and the government has been rising for months. In November, the House of Representatives suspended plenary for one week after angry contractors stormed the National Assembly Complex, accusing the government of refusing to release funds allocated in the 2024 and 2025 budgets. As of Tuesday, the Federal Ministry of Finance had still not issued any formal statement regarding the latest protest, and ministry officials reportedly maintained silence throughout the demonstration.
