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A total of N1.08 billion, amounting to
interests from about N100 billion realized from the sale of the Federal
Government properties, has been recovered from six banks, according to
the chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Housing and
Habitat, Garba Shehu Matazu.

The banks and the amounts recovered
from them are Skye Bank N226,209,506.18; Equatorial Trust Bank N115,
295,175.84; Oceanic Bank N404,173,076.08; and Intercontinental Bank
N59,806,556.55. Others are Wema Bank N241,426,097.38 and United Bank
for Africa N39,754,814.12. Of the lot, only Oceanic Bank, which paid in
two instalments of N163,191,144.88 and N240,981,931.20 concluded its
payment last Monday. Mr. Matazu, said at a public hearing on the
matter, that the committee decided to recover the money itself when the
Presidential Implementation Committee on the Lease of the Federal
Government Property (PIC), and its consultant resorted to it for
assistance due to the refusal of the banks to respond to their various
efforts in recovering the interests.

Carrot and stick method

He added that the committee intervened
vigorously through solicitations and letter, even threat of invocation
of its constitutional powers for compulsion to obtain surrender and
cooperation. Mr. Matazu said the committee frowned at the affront by
the banks, which it adjudged deliberate and aimed at defrauding the
government and people of Nigeria, adding that it went further to
threaten the concerned banks with the invitation of the police and the
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) if they failed to remit
the withheld funds into the coffers of the PIC.

“The above became expedient when the
committee realised that the non-payment bothered on sheer deceit,
unwillingness to remit, and the belief that if the said funds are not
recovered after a time, it may be forgotten,” he said. “The committee
has vowed to unearth and to make sure that all agencies and banks
involved are made to pay up as the present House is determined to
unplug all noticeable avenues of sleaze in the system, and make sure
more money available to government to accomplish developmental
programmes.” Mr Matazu also said having recovered the interests, the
committee will now embark on the second phase of its job in “fulfilling
the resolution of the House to recover those federal government
properties that were carved out illegally and some sold out without the
money being paid into the government treasury.”

Kudos to the House

Minister of Land, Housing and Urban
Development, Nduesse Essien, confirmed that the banks have paid up the
interest as at July 9, and expressed happiness that the committee did a
marvellous job. “That is the essence of parliament,” he said. “It acts
as a watchdog because without doing so, a lot of things would have gone
awry.” Mr. Essien said he has invited the 14 banks involved in the
implementation programme to a meeting during which he told them the
ministry’s plan to streamline the number of banks to six to ease
reconciliation in future. In choosing the six banks, the minister
added, “we are going to look at what they will give us, how much
interest they are giving us. So, from next month we are going to
appoint six banks who will be holding the accounts of the PIC.” He also
said that the ministry has given those who bided for government houses,
but are yet to pay or take possession of the properties, 21 days within
which to do so or have them revoked. He added that he has signed about
30 Certificates of Occupancy in the last two weeks.

Also speaking at the hearing, the PIC Secretary, Mohammed Yahuza
said the committee has 69 litigations in court and that they are being
handled by the office of the Attorney General and Minister of Justice.
Consultant to PIC, Enyiuwa Okpara commended the House committee for
recovering the money. In his remarks, the Speaker, Dimeji Bankole,
represented by the Minority Leader, Mohammed Ali Ndume, expressed
happiness at the achievement of the committee, adding “You may recall
that the recovery of over N4 billion made during the 2008 Financial
Year has ushered in new culture of returning funds into the public
coffers at the end of the year.”