The Federal Government has set up a task force comprising the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC), and the Ministry of Justice in a bid to recover the N5trillion owed the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) by individuals and organisations.
The team is expected to draft strategies for recovery of the debts.
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This came after Vice President Yemi Osinbajo met Heads of agencies tackling financial crimes and Permanent Secretaries of ministries at the State House, Abuja, on Monday night.
Those at the meeting were heads of the EFCC, ICPC, NFIU, ICPC, AMCON and the Ministry of Justice and Transportation.
In a statement released after the meeting, the federal government said: “To this effect, a special task force/committee comprising the heads of AMCON, the EFCC, the NFIU, the ICPC and the Ministry of Justice will be working to develop and implement new strategies that will ensure that the determination of the FG to recover the money is speedily achieved.”
While speaking on the task force mandate, Osinbajo said: “The key is collaboration. We need a small team comprising these agencies to look at the next steps that we need to take, especially the criminal aspect, forfeiture and all of that.”
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What you need to know: The top 20 defaulting entities and individuals on AMCON’s list are the first targets of the task force, with the application of criminal procedures.
The AMCON Chairman, Dr. Muiz Banire, said about 67% of the N5 trillion debtors are just 20 individuals and entities.
“The debt recovery agency was trying its best in its attempt to recover this through the civil judicial process, but had encountered several challenges,” Banire added.
