COVID-19 supplies: FCTA drags feet on payment of contractors
…Contractors allege Permanent Secretary demands bribes from them
By Taofeek LAWAL, Abuja
Over 300 contractors on Monday besieged the Federal Capital Territory Association (FCTA) to demand the payment of the supplies of COVID-19 equipment and materials they supplied to the Administration since last year.
The contractors accused the Permanent Secretary of the FCTA, Mr Olusade Adesola, of deliberately sitting on their money despite filing all the necessary papers needed to facilitate the payment of the said money. It has not been the best of time for the Permanent Secretary in recent times as Joint Union Action Committee (JUAC), the umbrella body of workers in the FCTA, FCDA and the SDAs, have accused the Olusade of occupying office illegally.
According to one of the contractors, Emmanuel Nwachendu, who spoke to journalists, the Permanent Secretary incurred their wrath for failing to pay the various COVID-19 contracts executed for the administration between March 2020 and April 2021. The contractors alleged that the permanent secretary is demanding N1 million each from them before their money will be paid.
“The accusation of N1 million bribe before you are paid is true. This is one whole year after the supply. The agreement states that two weeks after the supply, once you supply, bring your invoice and you will be paid. This is one year running nothing, what we are hearing is that each of the contractors has to pay N1 million bribe to the Permanent Secretary before we can be paid, that without the N1 million bribe you won’t get paid,” Nwachendu said.
The Permanent Secretary, they alleged, has been paying some of the contractors, especially those who reportedly agreed to give him N1 million bribe. The contractors also added that they supplied various medical equipment and Personal Protective equipment and other things used in containing the pandemic.
“We supplied medical equipment, agents, PPE but since that last year it has been one story or the other. What we heard initially was that procurement processes were suspended and these money was supposed to have been paid within two weeks, maximum one month of supply. Some of us took loan to be able to meet up with the supply. The Permanent Secretary Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, Adesola Olusade, came and met with us. He brought the procurement process and that day we were over 300 contractors in the room. They told us they were waiting for the supplementary budget and that as soon as the supplementary budget is passed that we are going to be paid. As soon as the supplementary budget was passed, they asked us to bring our documents which we did. We followed it up to ensure that everyone made it. We followed the files, what was annoying was that they batched the files, they said they said they were paying us 80 percent and we told them to go ahead and pay. They paid the first batch but when it got to the second batch which had more contractors, there was a problem.”
The Permanent Secretary however has denied ever asking anybody for a N1 million bribe. He said the delay in paying the contractors was due to their failure to meet all the administrative requirements.
“I am not aware of any payment of N1 million. The only instruction I gave was that all documents should be in file before any payment can be made. The payment is in batches, we have paid others. Contractors below N10m have been paid, If there are issues, the contractors are the cause because they are yet to meet up with the requirements,” the Permanent Secretary said.
Meanwhile, Adesola was not specific on when the remaining contractors will get their payment, an action which made the contractors get more infuriated and shouted on him (the Permanent Secretary).
