A renewed protest by local contractors over unpaid government projects turned tense on Monday as demonstrators, again, blocked the entrance to the federal ministry of finance in Abuja, preventing Doris Uzoka-Anite, minister of state for finance from entering the complex. The standoff escalated when security personnel fired a shot into the air, causing panic among protesters. No injuries were reported.

The demonstrators, under the All Indigenous Contractors Association of Nigeria (AICAN), are demanding payment for completed projects, claiming the Federal Government owes over N4 trillion.

The protest follows a series of similar demonstrations in 2025 and comes amid mounting frustration over repeated delays in settling verified contracts.

Jackson Nwosu, president of AICAN, said the protest was a response to worsening financial pressures on local contractors. “The government has failed to honour the agreement to pay contractors whose project details had been submitted and verified.

Payments finalised before the closure of the payment portal at the end of December never reflected in our accounts,” he said.

There have been claims that the majority of debts have been settled. However, contractors say that only 30 to 40 percent of outstanding payments have been made, with warrants stopping in May 2025. Many firms have borrowed to execute government contracts, and some have faced bank defaults and asset seizures as a result.

Fredrick Agada, AICAN vice president, described the response of security operatives as intimidation. “This is a peaceful protest. We are harmless. We are just sitting down peacefully, demanding our money, our payment,” he said. Babatunde Oyeniyi, the association’s secretary-general, said efforts to resolve the issue with the Ministry of Finance, the National Assembly, and other agencies since June 2025 have been fruitless. “Continued neglect of indigenous contractors is damaging the domestic economy,” he warned.

The protest blocked Uzoka-Anite from accessing the ministry despite efforts by security personnel to clear a path.

Demonstrators chanted slogans calling for immediate payment, highlighting the frustration of firms who say they have executed projects without corresponding compensation.

Last December, President Bola Tinubu established a multi-ministerial committee to address contractor arrears, with outstanding payments at that time estimated at N1.5 trillion.

The committee includes Wale Edun, minister of finance and coordinating minister.of the economy; Atiku Bagudu, minister of budget and economic planning; Dave Umahi, minister of works; Ahmed Dangiwa, minister of housing; Tanimu Yakubu, Director-General, Budget Office and Zacch Adedeji, chairman, Nigeria Revenue Service.

A Senate committee has also summoned Edun to provide explanations for the delays, and the federal government has allocated N1.7trn to pay contractors debts in the 2026 appropriation bill before the National Assembly.

The contractors, however, insist they will continue the protest until all verified contract payments are made, insisting indigenous firms should not be treated differently from foreign contractors, whose payments they say are processed without delay. (BusinessDay)