By Progress Godfrey

ABUJA – The All Indigenous Contractors Association of Nigeria, (AICAN) has urged the Federal Government to clear outstanding payments owed to contractors, saying prolonged delays are forcing many members to lose their properties, and in some cases, their lives.

The National President of the association, Mr Jackson Nwosu, spoke during a medical outreach in Abuja on Thursday, organised to mark one year of the group’s advocacy for the payment of contracts executed by its members.

He said the association chose to mark the anniversary with a health outreach because many contractors had developed stress-related illnesses, while others had died from complications linked to hypertension, abnormal blood sugar and other health conditions caused by financial pressure.

Nwosu said, “We organised this health assessment to enable our members to know their health status through proper medical examinations by doctors, optometrists and other healthcare professionals. We believe that early detection and proper management of health conditions will help prevent avoidable deaths among our members.”

He said the association’s advocacy had led to payments for some contractors, but many others were still waiting to be paid for projects executed between 2024 and 2026.

According to him, many indigenous contractors financed government projects with bank loans and are now battling rising interest charges, debt recovery actions and the loss of personal assets because of unpaid contracts.

The association’s Vice President, Mr Ode Agada, said the prolonged delay in payments had left many contractors with serious health problems, including high blood pressure and heart-related illnesses, while some had died under the weight of financial stress.

He said, “The medical personnel have been tremendous. They have given us useful advice, especially at a time when many contractors are under serious financial and emotional stress due to unpaid jobs. We organised this health check to enable our members to know their health status and manage health-related issues to avoid the sudden deaths we have been experiencing.”

Agada said the association had engaged the Minister of Finance and other government officials on the matter, but many contractors were still awaiting payment. He blamed part of the delay on the current centralised payment system, arguing that the previous arrangement, which allowed Ministries, Departments and Agencies to process payments directly, was faster and more efficient.

A medical practitioner, Dr Karen Ogunowo, advised contractors to pay closer attention to their health and learn how to manage stress despite their financial challenges.
She said the outreach focused on preventive healthcare, with participants undergoing blood pressure and blood sugar tests while receiving health education on healthy living and disease prevention.

Agada appealed to the Federal Government to speed up payment of all outstanding contractual obligations, saying doing so would help contractors repay bank loans, protect their businesses and reduce the growing financial and health burden on indigenous contractors.