Protesters, under the aegis of the All Indigenous Contractors Association of Nigeria (AICAN), this Monday morning, 19/1/26, caused commotion at the entrance of the federal ministry of finance, Abuja as they prevented Doris Uzoka-Anite, the minister of state for finance, from accessing the complex.
The protesting local contractors were said to have blocked the gate of the ministry over debt owed by the federal government.
According to reports, when the minister arrived at the entrance, attempts by security operatives to create a pathway into the building for her were forcefully rejected and resisted by the demonstrators.
It was amid this scuffle that a gunshot was heard as security personnel attempted to disperse the protesters.
Making their position known, the contractors alleged that the federal government has refused to pay them for projects executed as well as refusing to release the funds earmarked in the 2024/2025 budgets.
Recall, the contractors, last year, organised a series of protests at the National Assembly Complex and finance ministry.
President Bola Tinubu, in reacting to the development, set up a multi-ministerial committee in December 2025 to resolve the debt owed to federal contractors, with outstanding payments at about N1.5 trillion.
