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NPA sets aside N3.2billion
to pay contractors
By Muyiwa
Dare
Maritime
Reporter,
Lagos
The management of the Nigeria
Ports Authority (NPA) has denied alleged plans to stop the payment of
money owed contractors, saying N3.2 billion ($21.3million) has been
dedicated in three separate accounts for the
purpose.
Three executive directors of
the NPA, Messrs Abba Mohammed, Desmond Akawor and Wasiu Yaro, at a meeting
with the contractors that were owed by the organisation explained that
management is only trying to ensure that payments are made to contractors
for jobs verified by the Ministerial Contracts Verification Committee,
without delay.
The Executive Director of
Finance, Abba Mohammed attributed the delay in the payment to the
directive from the Presidency through the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission (EFCC) that suspended all payments to contractors for jobs
executed between 2001 and 2003.
Another reason he gave for the
delay in the payment was a further directive by the EFCC that 25 per cent
of the total sum be deducted at source and paid into an account identified
by the commission.
He informed the contractors of
the efforts by the Managing Director of the NPA, Chief Adebayo Sarumi, on
the lifting of the ban through official correspondence and personal
contacts with the officials of the commission, in an effort to cushion the
suffering of the contractors.
The directors assured the
contractors that since they are stakeholders in the NPA family, there is
no way the organisation could short-change or frustrate
them.
They also urged the
contractors to realise that things have changed for the better in the
organisation and advised that they should be keeping in touch with the
organisation from time to time to keep themselves abreast of happenings on
the issue.
Responding , the spokesman of
the contractors, Mr. Taju Owoyemi thanked the Management of the NPA for
granting them audience and appealed that the organisation should dialogue
with EFCC to facilitate speedy payment.
He also called on the Minister
of Transport , Dr. Abiye Sekibo to release the final batches of the bills
already verified by the Ministerial Committee to enable NPA effect their
payments.
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