The House of Representatives on Thursday summoned the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Yemi Cardoso, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun; Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu; the Accountant-General of the Federation, Babatunde Ogunjimi and the Auditor-General for the Federation, Mr Shaakaa Chira, over non-payment of contractors since 2024.
The resolution of the House followed the adoption of a motion moved during Thursday’s plenary by Delta lawmaker, Mr Ezechi Nnamdi.
Moving the motion, the lawmaker expressed concern that contractors across all Federal Government Ministries, Departments, and Agencies had yet to receive payment for certified work completed since October 2024, despite budgetary provisions for capital projects in the 2024 Appropriation Act.
Nnamdi explained, ‘Budget releases under the 2024 financial year to MDAs remain below 50 per cent, resulting in widespread project abandonment, financial distress among contractors, and an overall negative impact on the economy’.
He stated, ‘The non-payment has severely hindered the implementation of critical constituency projects, undermined public confidence in government delivery, and weakened investor trust in the nation’s infrastructure sector’.
Nnamdi expressed worry that ‘the delay in payment to contractors has resulted in job losses, stalling of infrastructure development, and disruptions to community-based projects across the federation’.
He pointed out that ‘the situation if left unchecked, could lead to mass protests, legal disputes, and complete paralysis of public projects’.
The House resolved to invite the concerned officials to appear before it on Tuesday, May 13, 2025 to explain the reasons for the non-payment of contractors and provide a clear timeline for settling all outstanding verified payments.
Following the adoption of the motion, the House summoned “the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy; the Honourable Minister of Budget and Economic Planning; the Accountant-General of the Federation; Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria; Auditor-General of the Federation, and any other relevant officials’.
The House also mandated its Committee on Public Accounts and Committee on Budget and Economic Planning to conduct a joint inquiry into the systemic failure to disburse funds for contractor payments.
It further mandated the committees to investigate accountability lapses at MDAs responsible for processing payments and report back to the House within four weeks with findings and recommendations for remedial legislative action.
