President Abinader, we are being abused, since in order to meet our contractual obligations to these institutions and to cover our commitments to workers and suppliers, we have had to invest our savings and incur bank debts.
SANTO DOMINGO - A group of more than one hundred engineers and architects requested President Luis Abinader's intervention to ensure they receive payment of more than RD$380 million pesos that they say the Dominican State owes them for completed projects.
The contractors belonging to the Dominican College of Engineers, Architects and Surveyors (Codia) explained that in October 2020 they sent a letter to the president, as a result of which a commission headed by Geanilda Vásquez was appointed to follow up on their case and for the State to pay them what was owed.
Architect Emiliano Familia Santos, representing the plaintiffs, said that they exhausted all the procedures requested by the State to update the certifications in each of the 14 debtor institutions.
“They asked us to update the certifications in each of the institutions, then they explained that the payment had to be through the Ministry of Finance, now they tell us that the institutions have not sent the certification of each of those debts, so now we have this roadblock, we are in limbo, so we understand that the president must intervene for the payment,” Santos declared.
He said that these are works that date back more than 25 years (1996-2022).
“President Abinader, we are being abused, since in order to meet our contractual obligations to these institutions and to cover our commitments to workers and suppliers, we have had to invest our savings, as well as incur bank debts,” the petitioners stated.
They maintain that in most cases, contractors have had to resort to mortgaging their homes and putting properties, machinery and construction equipment, trucks, vans, among others, up for sale to get out of some of the commitments caused by the non-compliance of these institutions.
The plaintiffs stated that they have worked diligently, with dedication and a commitment to service, and reminded Abinader of his promise to honor this debt upon taking office. “We, the engineers who are creditors for the older projects, to whom you promised that you would honor this debt upon assuming power, earnestly request that you initiate the payment process for the first group of 107 construction professionals, whose files have already been properly reviewed and whose debt certifications are up-to-date,” they asserted.
“By fulfilling our request and keeping your promise, you would be performing an act of justice, fulfilling the sacred duty of giving continuity to the State, to consolidate the peace and democracy that are so needed in our country,” they said.
