A DEBT controversy erupted in the Federal Capital Territory on Monday as local contractors clashed with the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, over alleged unpaid contract bills running into ₦5.2 billion.
Dozens of protesting contractors stormed the minister’s residence in Abuja, carrying placards and demanding immediate payment for projects they claimed to have executed over the last two years.
One of the contractors, Okeke Benardine, alleged that despite Wike settling part of their liabilities when he assumed office, the bulk of their payments had been outstanding for nearly two years.
“When the minister came, he paid us some. But most of our liability presently is from this administration. We have not been paid for almost two years now. For instance, I installed air conditioners, inverters, and boreholes. Yet, my outstanding is about ₦270 million,” Bernardine told The PUNCH.
He put the collective debt at about ₦5.2bn, though he claimed the actual figure could be higher, as not all bills had been captured.
Another contractor, Adebola Benson, alleged harassment over the debt issue.
“I was arrested just for sending the minister a text message, asking why we were not being paid. The next thing I saw was a police officer calling me. We don’t know why the minister is not addressing us directly. We want him to meet us one-on-one,” he lamented.
During the demonstration, the aggrieved contractors carried placards with messages such as “Hon Minister Wike, please kindly authorise our payment, we can hardly take care of our families” and “Hon Minister Wike, please extend your kindness to indigenous contractors.”
The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), however, swiftly dismissed the claims.
In a statement signed by Lere Olayinka, Senior Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media to the minister, the FCTA insisted that Wike had not awarded any contracts to local contractors worth ₦5bn.
“No contract was awarded to any of the local contractors by the FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike. If they have documents showing award of contracts by the minister, they should produce them,” Olayinka said.
He explained that Wike inherited ₦10bn in “minor procurement” liabilities from previous administrations, which he cleared in two phases: over ₦5bn in December 2023 and another ₦5bn in January 2024.
According to Olayinka, the appearance of new contractors with fresh claims of ₦15bn – later reduced to ₦8bn, and now ₦5bn – raises questions of legitimacy.
“On whose authority were the contracts awarded? Those are the questions they have to answer first,” he stated.
The FCTA maintained that while all inherited obligations had been settled, the minister had not signed off on new contracts under the disputed “minor procurement” framework.
The face-off highlights long-running disputes between government officials and contractors in Abuja, where questions over “ghost contracts,” inflated bills, and political patronage frequently dominate public discourse.
For now, the contractors say they will not back down until their claims are verified and payments made, while the FCTA insists that only legitimate, documented contracts will be honoured.
The development threatens to deepen tension between the administration and indigenous contractors, many of whom insist they are struggling to stay afloat due to the prolonged delays.