Pelumi Olajengbesi, a legal practitioner, has asked the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to monitor the allocation of the 753 duplexes handed over to the federal ministry of housing.
Ola Olukoyede, chairman of the EFCC, handed over the forfeited estate to Ahmed Dangiwa, the minister of housing and urban development, on Tuesday.
The uncompleted estate is located in the Lokogoma district of the federal capital territory (FCT).
A statement by Dangiwa said President Bola Tinubu had directed that the recovered estate be completed and made available to the Nigerian public through a “transparent and accountable” process.
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In a statement on Wednesday, Olajengbesi asked the EFCC to keep a close watch on the process of allocating the properties, warning that some government officials could hijack the scheme if left unchecked.
He commended Olukoyede “for his transparent and selfless disposition in the recovery of loots so far”.
“However, the work of the anti-graft agency is not done with the handover to the ministry of housing,” the lawyer said.
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“Given the intractable corruption and lack of transparency and accountability that has become an ugly trademark in most ministries of government, the EFCC should painstakingly monitor the allocation of the recovered loot. This would go a long way to ensuring that cronies of government officials are not the only ones who would usurp the recovered duplexes.”
Olajengbesi called for the creation of an independent committee to ensure fairness and accountability in the distribution process.
“Also, an independent committee should be set up to include certified estate valuers, auditors, civil society organisations, respected activists, lawyers, religious leaders, diligent EFCC officers and officials of the Housing Ministry. This is to ensure high-level transparency and accountability in the process,” he said.
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