Scoop: Transition politicking leaves IRDC contractors deeper in debt, three years after executing contracts

Transition politicking from the Global Memorandum of Understanding, GMoU Governance Model of Chevron Nigeria Limited, CNL, to the Petroleum Industry Act, PIA, birthing the Host Communities Development Trust, HCDT, may be responsible for indigenous contractors of Itsekiri Regional Development Committee, IRDC, sinking deeper in debt, three years after successfully executing contracts awarded to them by IRDC.

The Itsekiri Regional Development Committee, IRDC, had on Monday August 1, 2022, signed contracts for the award of 380-meter road project at Omadino in Warri South Local Government Area, 560-meter road project at Bateren in Warri South-West Local Government Area, 140-meter road project in Tebu, Fish Market at Udo, land reclamation projects at  Usor and Ureju communities, a Town Hall at Kolokolo as well as face-lift of Gbokoda Cottage Hospital/perimeter fencing and cover walk-link to all units in the Cottage hospital, all in Warri North Local Government Area of Delta State.

The projects, included 81 housing units of 1 and 2 bedroom detached bungalows, spread across 16 other communities as well as the construction of a Town Hall and 2-bedroom Housing Unit at Tisun Community in Warri North Local Government Area and Concrete Walkway at Ugbeogungun in Warri South -West Local Government Area, which were subsequently awarded as part of the 2021/2022 projects’ cycle of IRDC.

The Ag. Chairman of Itsekiri Regional Development Committee, IRDC, Mr. Itse Orugbo, who spoke briefly during the contract signing ceremony/kick-off meeting held Monday August 1, 2022, at IRDC Secretariat in Warri, Delta State, stated: “Today we are going to sign projects for 89 contractors. Almost 230 contractors, bid for the jobs and 89 were successful. We intend to do more contracts for the communities to benefit further. The projects being awarded, were based on demands from the benefiting communities and the contractors are indigenes”.

The Community Engagement Rep, Chevron Nigeria Limited, CNL, Mr. Femi Abode, in his remarks, during the contract signing ceremony, appreciated the past and present leadership of IRDC, thanking them for partnering Chevron in the resolve to give better lives to people of the company’s host communities.

Mr. Abode, urged all stakeholders to be part of the transition from Itsekiri RDC to the Petroleum Industry Act, PIA implementation.

Representative of Delta State Government, Engr. Oniyeburutan A John and the Chairman, Programme and Project Review Committee, PRC of IRDC, Joseph Tester Owolo, who were at the event, charged successful contractors to execute the projects to specification and within the stipulated time frame, stressing that project abandonment will not be tolerated.

Three years after the contracts were signed, several of the contractors are yet to be paid, despite successfully completing the jobs.

The aggrieved contractors had on Friday October 14, 2022, threatened to “take the bull by the horns”, if nothing positive was done a week after, regarding money owed them.

Recall that the contractors, stormed the IRDC Secretariat in Warri same day (Friday October 14, 2022) before dispatching a delegation to Fresh Angle International’s Office, also in Warri, Delta State, for media engagement, lamenting: “Interests in the loan we took, are cumulating. We were supposed to offset the loan last month (September 2022) till now, we have not been able to offset the loans and this month, the interest is accruing”.

One of the contractors, Hon. Wilson Omajugho, who spoke to This Flagship Niger Delta Online Newspaper, on behalf of others, during the visit to Fresh Angle International’s Office, had explained: “We are here, because they gave us contract and the award letters given to us, indicated that two weeks after receiving the award letter, if we don’t mobilize to site, the letter will be withdrawn from us.

“For that reason, we went ahead to borrow money to start the project, because they didn’t mobilize us. They (the leadership of IRDC) said we should go and source for money to execute the projects. The projects were awarded precisely in July. The money we borrowed elapsed last month (September 2022) and we have done the jobs to the extent they ought to have paid us. They said we must get to the level of gable, before money will be paid and we have attained that level, they ought to have paid us about a month ago. When we called the management of IRDC, they will ignore our calls.”

Investigations revealed that while a handful of the heavily indebted contractors have a glimmer of hope that the Host Communities Development Trust, HCDT (Warri Kingdom Coastal Host Communities’ Development Trust) under Chevron Nigeria Limited Coastal operational areas, would address the inherited liabilities, majority of the contractors, who completed the jobs awarded to them by IRDC in the upland communities, appear hopeless, claiming the leadership of IRDC usually refer them to Chevron Nigeria Limited for their payments, with the company’s (Chevron) officials purportedly directing the affected contractors to the IRDC leadership.

The affected contractors, kept insisting that the jobs were awarded to them by the IRDC executive, prior to the signing of the Petroleum Industry Act by then President Muhammadu Buhari, hence their money must be paid by IRDC leadership.

The seeming dilly-dallying between Chevron Nigeria Limited and IRDC leadership, may not be unconnected with the HCDTs yet to take-off in the non-coastal communities, under Chevron Nigeria Limited operational areas.

As at the time of this report, the distressed indigenous IRDC contractors, were planning fresh showdown that might negatively affect the operations of Chevron Nigeria Limited in Warri South, Warri South-West and Warri North Local Government Areas of Delta State.

×