The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, has assured Nigerians that no recovered or forfeited asset will be mismanaged under his leadership.
Olukoyede made the commitment on Tuesday while weighing in on the ongoing debate over the management of assets recovered by government agencies.
In a statement shared on his X handle, the EFCC chairman said his position was informed by his experience as a former Secretary of the commission, where he was involved in managing recovered assets for several years.
He opposed proposals for the creation of a single agency to manage all assets recovered by government institutions, arguing that similar arrangements in other countries had encountered difficulties.
Olukoyede cited the United Kingdom, where he said an attempt to establish a central agency for recovered assets reportedly cost more than £34 million before being discontinued within a year. He also referenced South Africa, where he said a similar arrangement lasted about 16 months.
According to him, centralised management would be impractical in Nigeria because more than 20 statutory agencies are authorised to recover assets on behalf of the Federal Government.
He noted that the Nigeria Police Force, for instance, operates across virtually every local government area and has stations in numerous communities, making it difficult for one central agency to manage assets recovered by the police and other institutions.
The EFCC chairman also cited the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), established to manage certain recovered assets, and claimed that the government lost more than N5 trillion under the arrangement.
Olukoyede argued that the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) provides a more practical framework by assigning responsibility to individual agencies to account for assets recovered under their respective mandates.
He added that the framework, alongside Section 31 of the EFCC Act, provides mechanisms for accountability in the management of recovered assets.
The EFCC chairman challenged government agencies to account for assets recovered under their respective mandates.
He said the EFCC publishes information on recovered assets on its website within 24 hours and that the commission’s annual reports had been submitted to the National Assembly on time throughout his tenure.
Olukoyede ended his statement with a pledge to Nigerians, saying: “Not a pin nor a penny of recovered assets will be mismanaged under my watch.”
