Protesting DESOPADEC Contractors to storm Government House, if the Commission’s Board members pay themselves

Protesting contractors to Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission, DESOPADEC, under the aegis of DESOPADEC Indigenous Contractors and Stakeholders Forum, DICSF, today, Monday April 11, threatened to storm Delta State Government House, Asaba, if members of the Commission’s Board, go ahead with alleged plan to pay for contracts awarded to themselves through proxies.

The Chairman of DESOPADEC Indigenous Contractors and Stakeholders Forum, DICSF, Mr. Fidelis Ete Orugboh, who handed down the threat this morning, at the gate of the Commission, during the resumed protest to press home their demand for payment of monies owed them for jobs executed with verified payments’ certificate, alleged that members of the Board of DESOPADEC, led by the Chairman and Managing Director, “have scheduled payment for themselves today”.

While explaining that they took a week break from the protest, following an appeal by the Warri Area Commander of the Nigerian Police, ACP Abubaka Argungu, Mr. Orugboh, declared: “We waited to hear from them (members of the Board of the Commission) but they gave us deaf ears and the next thing we heard, was that they were going to pay themselves today. The protest continues and we will move to Government House, Asaba, if they pay themselves for contracts recently executed through proxies”.

The aggrieved contractors, who carried placards with inscriptions such as, "DESOPADEC pay contractors", "we need our money, DESOPADEC pay us", "we stakeholders, we need to be carried along, talk to us", " we need Our money now DESOPADEC", insisted: “They have refused to include us in DESOPADEC monthly/routine payments, in line with the existing payments structure in the Commission”.

Recall that the distressed contractors, began the protest at the entrance of the Commission’s Secretariat in Warri, Delta State, Wednesday March 30, telling newsmen that the Chairman of DESOPADEC, Hon. Michael Diden, the Managing Director, Bashorun Askia Ogieh and other Board members of the Commission, refused paying them their money, despite all entreaties to that effect, vowing that they will deny workers and members of DESOPADEC Board, access to the Commission’s Secretariat, until they receive their payment, estimated to be in the region of five billion naira (N5,000,000,000.00).

One of the distressed contractors, during the protest today

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