GETfund Contractors to lock up schools

Contractors hired by the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) to construct school buildings are threatening to lock up school buildings if Government do not pay them monies they are being owed.

The Association said the lack of payments to its members is impacting negatively on their families.

The Group calling themselves The Association of GETFund Contractors are raising concerns over GETFund’s refusal to pay them for work they were engaged to do.

In a bid to show their displeasure of the way they are being treated, they have indicated that they will be forced to take a bold step to lock up schools to show if that is what is going to get governments attention to pay them.

Speaking to journalists at separate meetings in Sunyani , Koforidua, Kumasi and Accra some of the contractors said the government led by Nana Addo Danquah Akufo Addo have released GHc2 billion which has been duly paid into the accounts of the GETFund coordinator but has not been released yet into the account of the various contractors making life unbearable for them whiles some of them have died as a result of that and some on their sick bed.

They further stated that besides the possible decision to lock up schools, one other option available to them is to take court action against GETFund.

According to them, they have been given assurance by GETFund Administrator Hon Naa Torshie that their money will be paid but they will not take their word for it until the payment hit their account.

“We have had a series of meetings and discussions with them, the assurance is that they are preparing and GETFund will be paying the contractors anytime soon but two years down the line is not an easy journey so up to now we cannot be sure of what they are telling us”, they fumed.

They further observed that most of the contractors are suffering and Banks that they took loans from to construct the school building are on their necks for their money.

“Most contractors are just suffering and the banks are on our necks every day. So in fact our members are just not happy”.

If the contractors go ahead to lock up schools it will mean that a lot of schools all around the country will be affected leaving hundreds of students without classrooms to study.