Five hundred and thirty-Eight (538) aggrieved contractors of Ghana First Company have presented a petition to the Flagbearer of the opposition National Democratic Congress John Dramani Mahama over government’s failure to facilitate their payments.

The contractors presented the petition to Mr Mahama at a whistle-stop at Nkyenoa in the Okere Constituency of the Eastern Region as part of his four-day campaign tour which commenced today.

Mr.Mahama called on President Akufo-Addo to pay the contractors.

“You asked contractors to build toilet facilities, they have built them however, you have refused to pay them. Some went for loans to pre-finance the projects. You are going round Commissioning toilet projects. When we requested for the projects they presented a tall list of toilet facilities not knowing they have not even paid for them. Nana Akufo-Addo and Bawumia, please pay the contractors,” he said.

Mr. Mahama accused the Akufo-Addo-led government of deliberately collapsing and stiffing businesses in the country since assuming office. He said the situation has led to job losses and hardship.

“If you have nothing for your In-law, don’t rob him or her. You have not created jobs yet you have collapsed banks and other Ghanaian companies ”

Ghana First Company Limited [GhFCL], a waste management firm owned by Mr Frank Akulley, a staunch member of the ruling New Patriotic Party with its German partners signed a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) agreement with the government of Ghana in 2018 through the Local Government Ministry and the Sanitation Ministry to construct 20,000 units of modern automated toilet facilities across all Metropolitan, Municipal and Districts across the country at cost of $300,000,000.

Subsequently, the company awarded first batch of 2000 toilet facilities on contract across the country but has failed to pay the contractors leading to collapse of their companies while their bankers have seized their properties to offset the loans. Some of the contractors have reportedly died as a result of the hardship.

According to Ghana First Contractors, government absolved itself from the projects when it backfired so they shocked that it has been captured in the list of government infrastructure achievement.

” Almost 70% of the projects mentioned are all our projects. if you see any project titled ongoing modern 16 seater, 20 seater, or 14 seater or ongoing Ghana First Toilet all these projects are all our projects so we don’t understand why government will go and hide and then come back later to say the projects are his hence can’t pay us,” Yaw Tawiah Dickson, Public Relations Officer of the aggrieved First Ghana Contractors Association told Starr News in an earlier interview.