Middle Belt Contractors who undertook various projects under the current New Patriotic Party (NPP) government flagship programme US $1Million per Constituency have called on the government to settle debts owed them for projects executed and certified with immediate effect.
Failure by the government of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to settle the debts, they threatened would compile them to lock up the school facilities and all other facilities under middle belt contract and in addition hit all the regional capitals with earth-shaking demonstrations to let the world know their precarious lot.
The Association with over 500 members told Soireenews.com that government owes them over GH¢500 million, adding that lack of payments to its members has negatively impacted their business activities.
“Middle Belt Contractors have struggled to meet their financial obligations to the banks, families and material creditors, among others,” they added.
Confirming this in an interview with journalists, Chairman for the aggrieved Middle Belt Contractors, Mr James Gyan disclosed that NPP government’s inability to pay them their due has led to the loss of jobs and properties used as collateral by its members for bank loans; hitherto, government had promised them of prompt payment within 28 days of raising certificate of work done since funds were available.
He served notice that if government did not settle the debts it owned Middle Belt Contractors by the end of January, 2021, “we will lock up the school facilities and all other facilities under middle belt contract, built with the sweat of our toil, for which some of our members’ lives have been put at risk”.
In addition, he stared that “we will hit all the regional capitals with earth-shaking demonstrations to let the world know our precarious lot.”
“What we are saying now is that, we are giving Government 11 day’s 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 stressed.
Mr. Gyan said, in a bid to show their displeasure of the way they have been treated, they have indicated that they will be forced to take a bold step to lock up schools since that is what is going to get government’s attention to pay them.
He revealed that some of the projects they undertook were Construction of 10 and16 seater toilet facilities, Market Stores, Durbar grounds, Police Post, 3 and 6unit Classroom blocks, Road shaping, Chip Compounds, construction of green grass pitches, boreholes etc all under US$1 Million Per Constituency Projects.
