*Injuries As Police Teargas Peaceful Protesters
*DSS, NASS Links In Contractors’ Quest For Payment
*Passersby Pour Invectives On Minister
*Protest Set To Continue Tomorrow
By our reporter
It was a tense day at the No.1 Kapital Road, Area 11, Abuja headquarters of Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) today as irate contractors converged on the front main entrance gate in protest over an over two-year-old debt stock of N5.2b owed them allegedly on the orders of the Minister of FCT, Barrister Nyesom Wike.
Several contingents of heavily armed police personnel and, later,soldiers and men of Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) massed against the protesters, whose conduct was generally peaceful.
From as early as 8am, the contractors began to gather in front of the main gate waving Nigeria’s green-white-green flag and singing various songs such as “all we are saying, Wike, pay us our money.”
In their scores, they also displayed banners and posters,some of which read “The jobs were legally awarded, confirmably executed and duly certified for payment”, “Wike, pay us our money” and so on.
Apparently aware of the situation, Wike failed to show up in office right up to about 2.30pm when the contractors, after several shouting matches with the Minister’s security guards led by his Chief Security Officer (CSO),Mohammed Iya, and interventions of other officials, called it a day.
Security sources told People&Politics that Wike’s absence today sharply contrasts with his usual routine. According to the source,yesterday (Monda), for instance, the Minister arrived office at his usual time of about 10am and left about 2pm.
Sources in the know within FCTA told People&Politics that a top security official in the Administration had informed the Minister to keep off today, seeing the mood of the protesters.
However, one of the protesters, who identified himself as Ben Ojuomale, said the Minister’s presence was important “because all he needs do is address us and give us a date to pay us our money; that’s all. Running away from work does him or our complaints no good.”
Many passersby poured Invectives on Minister Wike for not paying the contractors, with some saying: “Pay them their money! Is Wike paying from his personal pocket? This sort of attitude is not good for the image of the President Bola Tinubu government at this time when it is facing threats from the international community led by the US.”
On its part, the Minister’s spokesman, Lere Olayinka, had some months ago,replied the contractors, saying the Minister doubted the transparency in the contracts’ award.
The jobs were for several public utility projects, supply of vital office furniture and accessories and others.
Again, Police Fire Teargas At Contractors
Earlier, allegedly on the orders of the CSO, police personnel at the gate fired canisters of teargas at the contractors, causing a huge stampede as many scampered for safety,resulting in injuries.
When the dust cleared, one of the injured, Mr. Kenneth Anieme, who displayed two canister injuries on his right knee with fresh blood streaming over his leg and staining his white trousers, lamented the situation where they were attacked rather than being paid their money.
Apparently close to tears, he told journalists that he arrived for the protest hale and hearty, only to be fired at by the police, leading to the injuries.
Anieme said he would seek medical treatment at his own expense after the news interview.
The police teargas sparked a heavy gridlock in the area as several commuters fled their vehicles and ran for dear lives, abandoning their vehicles in the process.
Most passersby were sighted by our reporter running the race of their lives with many apparently believing that live bullets could be involved in the crackdown.
Many persons were also sighted wearing face masks or applying water to their eyes to soothe the peppery sensation of the teargas.
It was the second time the protesting contractors had been tear-gassed allegedly on the orders of Minister Wike or persons in his circle.
Similar incident occurred on 15 August 2024 when police also fired teargas at the contractors. Storming the protest at the time with batons and shields in addition, they attacked the protesters, injuring several in the process.
Speaking to newsmen today, Chairman of the Contractors’ group, Mr. Benson Ehuwa, deplored the “state humiliation” being meted to his members, whom he described as long-time partners of FCTA in infrastructural development of the nation’s capital under successive past Ministers.
On his part, Vice-Chairman of the association,
Mr. Okeke Bernadine, said it was “painful” that some of the facilities, including office furniture being enjoyed by top FCTA officials, were from contracts executed by his association even as they (contractors) have not received a kobo for the jobs done.
Background To Quest For Payment–The DSS, NASS Connections
A flyer handed out to journalists by the association listed the saga of their quest for payment of the said contract sum.
It read: “Background To Today’s Protest Over FCTA’s N5.2b Contracts Two-year Indebtedness To Association Of Indigenous Contractors Of FCT:
“Our members were awarded jobs by the FCTA at different Secretariats, Departments and Agencies (SDAs) and contract agreements were signed. We executed the jobs and on completion, they were certified by the relevant departments of the FCTA empowered by law. But unfortunately, it’s 2 years and more since our payments were not made because the Honourable Minister of FCT stopped or refused to grant approval.
“*We have written numerous letters to the Honorable Minister, FCT, Barrister Ezenwo Nyesom Wike, to pay us. Nothing came out of the series of communications to him, not even an invitation to us to talk with him. We have copies of some of the letters here.
“*Consequently, we explored other avenues such as reaching him through powerful outsiders, to humbly request that we be paid. We do not want to disclose names here, but they returned same outcome: that the Honorable Minister stopped our payment and did not give a date when he will pay.
“*Pressed to beyond back-breaking point against the wall, our members resorted to a peaceful protest to drive home our demands to get paid. On the morning of August 15,2024, we massed near the entrance gate leading into FCTA at Number 1 Kapital Road, Garki, holding banners asking for our payment, neither blocking vehicular movement nor impeding human access.
“However, a contingent of armed policemen stormed the scene shortly after, and started firing tear-gas canisters at us, injuring many as we scampered for safety of our dear lives in the ensuing melee.
“When the dust cleared, we were informed by some of the invading,but sympathetic police personnel, that it was the Honorable Minister who ordered the attack on us.
“*In December, 2024, we wrote an open letter in a national daily to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, detailing our plight.
“*We then involved the National Assembly over our matter. A few months ago, Senate called a public hearing into our issue, inviting the parties involved: us, FCTA authorities and others. FCTA did not turn up even as we were at the venue early.
“*Following further protests by our association, the Department of State Services (DSS) took over our matter, at their own initiative, to X-ray it with a fine toothcomb. For three months to date, nothing tangible has come out of its endeavor as we still remain unpaid.
“*Our legitimate quest to get paid took us to Brekete Family Radio where the producer, during a live phone-in programme, called FCTA’s Acting Director, Reform Coordination and Service Improvement Department, Dr Jumai Ahmadu, who publicly vowed that the FCTA authorities were working to sort out our matter –but, it’s been more than a year now and there has been no further reaction from them.
“*We have visited Heads of FCTA’s Secretariats, Departments and Agencies (SDAs) and they have confirmed that their SDAs certified our jobs and approved for payment, but the Minister stopped the payment.
“*We are Nigerians with families. What do we do in these circumstances? We have done EVERYTHING humanly possible to get the Honorable Minister pay us our money,to no avail.
“Therefore, we are left with no other option than resume our protests TODAY. We haven’t committed any crime for serving our country with our resources.
“It is heart-rending that some FCTA top shots are seated in offices renovated by our members, seated on chairs supplied by our members, enjoying facilities executed by our members –yet the Honorable Minister refuses to pay us.
“We need our payments to be made this December unfailingly.”
*PHOTO CAPTION: The protest amid heavy security buildup.
