From Abel Leonard, Lafia
Nasarawa state House of Assembly has invited the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Access bank PLC to come and explain to the house in details why the payment of contractors handling SUBEB projects in the state are not paid .
This was disclosed on Thursday by the Deputy Majority Leader of the House and Chairman House Committee on Education when the management of Nasarawa State Universal Basic Education Board appeared before the House for its 2021 Budget assessment.
Ogazi stressed that the house was disturbed by the numbers of petitions it had received from contractors handling SUBEB projects in the state.
He said non payment of contractors money after many of them had completed their Work while others are in the completion stages.
His words “Many of the contractors collected loans, some collected personal loan from individuals where they are to pay back 20% interest monthly aside the increase cost of construction materials in the market on daily basis”
“Many of these constructions have reached different stages of completion and the work have stopped and with raining season now affecting the structures”
“The bank action has also put the state in bad image before the world, that it did not pay it contractors not knowing that the fault is from the bank who have decided on the reasons best know to them to keep our money and be making high profits from it on the detriment of the government and the people of the state.”
It is on this note that we are inviting the MD/CEO of Access Bank to appear before the house on Wednesday 8th September 2021, to explain to us in details what is happening with the state money in their custody,”
“we have paid our counterpart funds as a state, the money has been lodged in the bank why are they keeping it unnecessary subjecting the state and contractors to hardship”
“We are also directing the Bank to begin payment to contractors with immediate effects, begining from today ,it is our money ,why are they keeping it,” living our school structures in bad shapes and now rain is destroying them,”
“I want to call on contractors to be patient, the house will protect their interest and their money is garanteed” he said.
Speaking Earlier, the state SUBEB chairman Mohammed Musa Dan’azumi explained in details the budget performance of the board and its challenges especially the non payment of contractors by Access Bank.
The committee on education also added that the proliferation of private schools in the state is alarming while calling on the state ministry of education to as a matter of urgency do something towards addressing the ugly situation.