Middle Belt Contractors demand payment from gov’t

Middle Belt contractors who undertook various projects under the government flagship programme, $1million per Constituency, have called on it to settle debts owed them for works executed and certified.

The contractors have threatened to lock up the facilities they put up if the government did not heed their call for payment.

Further, the contractors say they would embark on demonstrations in all the regional capitals to let their plight be heard.

Mr James Gyan, Chairman for the Middle Belt contractors, told the media in an interview about the challenges they had been subjected to having been denied payments.

According to him, the government owes the association, whose membership goes beyond 500, over GH¢500 million.

He added that lack of payments to its members had negatively impacted their business activities. “Middle Belt Contractors have struggled to meet their financial obligations to the banks, families and material creditors, among others,” he added.

Mr James Gyan said the government’s inability to pay them had led to the loss of jobs and properties used as collateral by its members for bank loans.

He revealed that hitherto, the government had promised them of prompt payment within 28 days of raising any certificate of work done, since funds were available.

However, the association served notice that if the government did not settle the debts by the end of January, 2021, “we will lock up the school facilities and all other facilities under [the] middle belt contract, built with the sweat of our toil, for which some of our members’ lives have been put at risk. In addition, we will hit all the regional capitals with earth-shaking demonstrations to let the world know our precarious lot.”

He continued: “What we are saying now is that, we are giving government 11 days ultimatum to pay us our due, failure which we shall go all out to get government to redeem its promise.

“We are informing government that, starting at the end of January, 2021, they will see us closing down the schools we have built but have not been paid for work done, yet these facilities are being used. This is the starting point to prove to government that they owe Middle Belt Contractors, and the contractors need their money.”

He revealed that some of the projects they undertook were construction of 10 and 16-seater toilet facilities, market stores, durbar grounds, police posts, three and six-unit classroom blocks, road shaping, Community-based Health Planning and Services compounds, construction of green grass pitches, boreholes, etc.

All these projects are under the $1 million Per Constituency projects without any payment made by government to that effect, in which some of the facilities are being used by various institutions, making it difficult to defend themselves that they have not been paid by government, hence this warning.

“Workers have been laid off because we can’t pay them. The situation has also brought untold hardship on us, resulting in some losing their lives,” he added.

Mr James Gyan said the arrears had not been settled over a year since the submission of certificates for work done.

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