The Federation of Construction Industry on Thursday expressed concerns over the alleged inconsistent policies of the Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, urging him to stop bringing politics into the profession.
The call was made by FOCI President, Chief Vincent Barrah, at the 68th Annual General Meeting of the construction workers’ union in Abuja.
Barrah argued that the imposition of contract prices and random termination of projects by the ministry due to lack of funding were breaches of standard contract conditions.
He also raised the alarm that Umahi’s policy reversals since coming into office were forcing many employers to retrench their workers.
“Our challenges are the recent various policy pronouncements by the Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, which are not in line with the standard conditions of contracts. For instance, the imposition of contract prices and non-contractual termination of contracts by the ministry due to its inability to fund projects are unacceptable.
“The results are the worsening conditions of roads we see across the country and, of course, the laying off of workers. This is because you cannot continue to retain and pay workers when the certified works you have done are not paid for.
“If an employer is to terminate a contract due to lack of proper funding, there are procedures and rules guiding it. These are some challenges affecting our relationship with the minister. We have written him a letter and had meetings with him twice. To date, all efforts to resolve these issues have not yielded the desired result,” he stated.
Peoplesmind