President Bola Tinubu has expressed deep displeasure over the backlog of unpaid funds owed to federal contractors across ministries and agencies.
The President has therefor set up a ministerial committee to urgently address the issue and recommend immediate solutions for settling the debts.
Presidenrial Spokesperson, Mr Bayo Onanuga disclosed this while briefing State House correspondents after Wednesday’s Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by the President at the State House, Abuja.
“The President expressed very grave displeasure about the fact that contractors are being owed money,.
“He actually said he was upset, and he then set up a committee of about six ministers, and said they should look into the problems of getting funds of paying those contractors,”
Onanuga said the Director-General of the Bureau of Public Procurement briefed the council on the volume of pending payments.
“The DG of procurement told the President that about 2,000 contractors are being owed money, and this made the President very upset,” he explained.
He listed the members of the committee tasked with identifying solutions, securing funds, and reporting back to the President.
“The Minister of Finance, Minister of Economic Planning, DG Budget, Minister of Works, Minister of Education, Minister of Housing, Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, and the FIRS Chairman are on the committee,” he said.
He added the President directed the members to work swiftly and collectively.
“All of them are supposed to sit down, meet as a committee, and then go to the President to tell him the solution they have found,” he told journalists.
Onanuga said Tinubu was unequivocal in his dissatisfaction and urgency on the matter.
“The President said he is not happy at all. He wants a quick solution,” he stressed.
