The House of Representatives on Friday expressed displeasure over the failure of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to timely dispose the N46 billion assets seized from the former Petroleum Minister, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke.
The Chairman of the House Ad-hoc Committee on Assessment and Status of All Recovered Loots Movable and Immovable Assets from 2002 to 2020 by agencies of the Federal Government of Nigeria for Effective Efficient Management and Utilisation, Hon. Adejoro Adeogun, expressed the Green Chamber’s displeasure when the Chairman of the EFCC, Mr. Abdulrasheed Bawa, appeared before the committee.
The lawmaker pointed out that it was not in the nation’s interest to continue keeping such recoveries in view of the depreciation of their values over time, particularly in view of the Nigeria’s current financial situation.
In his post-hearing chat with journalists on the continued delay of the assets’ disposal , Hon. Adeogun recalled that the Federal Government had set up a committee with the Solicitor General for the Federation serving as its chairman and expressed the hope that the committee is working tirelessly to achieve its mandate.
The lawmaker clarified: “We have EFCC representatives from that committee and we believe at the end of the day Nigerians are going to appreciate what that committee will come out with in terms of the mandate given to them.
“This is to ensure that assets that are not only recovered by the EFCC but the entirety of the recovery agencies assets are disposed of,” Adeogun added.
Earlier in his explanation, the EFCC chairman said though the commission secured the forfeiture order on the assets recovered from the former Petroleum Minister in 2019, they were yet to be auctioned.
Bawa linked the delay in disposing of the assets to long court processes and administrative exigencies.
He stated: “The estimated value of Diezani Allison’s jewelry in Naira is N14.4 billion. The estimated value of houses for the former Minister of Petroleum, Diezani Allison, is worth $80 million.”
The anti-graft chief promised that with the setting up of the committee by the government, all assets recovered by the EFCC and those recovered by other agencies would be disposed of quickly.
