Governor of Anambra State, Chukwuma Soludo, has agreed to meet with the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) next week with a view to reconciling the discrepancies and paying the N900 million debt owed fuel contractors who supplied diesel for streetlight generators in the state.
The governor’s decision was conveyed in a letter by the Commissioner for Local Government, Chieftaincy, and Community Affairs, Tony Nwabunwanne, in response to IPMAN’s letter of appeal for the settlement of the claim.
The commissioner, who assured that the government had noted IPMAN’s complaint and was committed to protecting their businesses, attributed the delay in payment to discrepancies in the contractors’ claims.
He, however, emphasized that the planned meeting would facilitate the reconciliation of the discrepancies and final settlement of the outstanding claims.
Nwabunwanne stated: ”I have invited the leadership of IPMAN for a meeting early next week for discussion, it is clear that they do not have the correct information on our dealings with the contractors, there are discrepancies.
“So, the meeting will enable us to reconcile these discrepancies and progress to the next step.
“The Gov. Chukwuma Soludo administration is a business-friendly one and will do all that is possible to support and help them stay in business,” Nwabunwanne added.
It would be recalled that the IPMAN had in its earlier letter titled “Request for Debt Payment of N900,664,805.00 Owed Our Members For Diesel Supplied and Services Rendered in Respect of Street Lights,” appealed to Governor Soludo to pay its members, who were contractors to the Anambra Government for the diesel they supplied to power streetlight generators in March and April 2022, to enable them sustain their operations.
According to the oil marketers association, the total debt was N900,664,805 owed approximately 70 of its members.
