The management of the Federal Housing Authority, FHA, has assured aggrieved members of the Abuja Contractors Association that they would all be paid, latest by March 19.
Kenneth Chigelu of the Public Affairs Unit, FHA, made this known in a statement as a fall out of a meeting with the contractors on Tuesday.
“The management of FHA just rose from a meeting with our contractors, with a resolution that all contractors who have completed their jobs will be receive their payments latest by Friday, March 19.
“Management did not deliberately withhold the payment to our contractors with whom the authority have long standing good business relationship.
“The little delay in payment is as a result of management’s stance on due diligence before payments are made.
“It is good to note that this issue have been amicably resolved,” he said.
Members of the Abuja Contractors Association had on Tuesday berated the FHA for its continued delay in the payment of their contract despite years of completion.
Speaking with journalists in Abuja, the Chairman of the association, Innocent ldika, lamented that many contractors who handled the Abuja Mass Housing Development Project at Zuba and APO Housing Development Project in Guzape District have not been paid till date.
He said despite the release of N1.5 billion, which is the total payment for Abuja Mass Housing Project, Zuba, by the federal government last year, the money has been with the management of the FHA.
Idika noted that some contractors had been issued payment certificate since December without payments while their files are stuck at the office of the Executive Director, Business Development, EDBD, since December 2020.
On the APO Housing Project, the contractors said that the project was awarded in 2011 and was completed since last year February 2020, disclosing that the houses have been purchased and people are living there but up till now a chunk of the money has not been paid.
The chairman stated that several appeals and meetings held with management to resolve the aforementioned were to no avail even as he further decried the Illegal deduction of 7.5 per cent Value Added Tax, VAT, as against 5 per cent that was clearly stated in the terms of both projects.
“Also, illegal deduction of 7.5% Value Added Tax as against 5% value Added Tax that was clearly stated in our BOQ and our letter of award of 2011 for Apo Project and 2018 of Zuba mass Housing Project,” he added.
