TheCable

Umar Mohammed, chairman of the inter-ministerial committee on the disposal of forfeited assets, says the assets have been allocated to 118 successful bidders. 

He said this on Friday at a media briefing held in Abuja.

Abubakar Malami, attorney-general of the federation (AGF) and minister of justice, in November 2020, set up an inter-ministerial committee for disposal of forfeited assets, following a directive by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Speaking at the briefing, Mohammed said six bids submitted after deadline were rejected, adding that assets such as jewelry were not available as they are still subjects of litigation. 

“The qualified valuers are as follows: Lot 1 – 64, Lot 2 – 46, Lot 3 – 7, and Lot 4 – 1. Six bids were rejected as they were submitted after the deadline for bids submission,” he said. 

“This press conference has been called to inform members of the press and the public at large of the successful bidders for Lots 1-4 valuers. However, the public is invited to note that only clothing materials are available at the moment due to the fact that jewelries are subject of litigation.”

Mohammed encouraged the bidders to be transparent in the sale of the forfeited assets, adding that the committee ensured transparency in the bidding and selection exercise. 

He also said the committee will work with the bidders to ensure successful completion of the task. 

“The method of selection is quality based selection method (QBS), while the consultancy fee will be based on agreed percentage from the proceeds of the disposed assets,” he said.

“The second reason we invited you is for you to observe the open balloting process to allocate lots/assets to the successful bidders. There is no ‘order from above’ in this particular exercise as we have planned it to be open and transparent in line with international best practice and anti-corruption drive of this administration.”