‘Nobody has claimed ownership of seized 753 duplexes’

Nobody has laid claims to the seized 753 units of duplexes in Lokogoma area of Abuja, Nigeria, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has said.

Sources at the agency said yesterday that to get forfeiture of the houses at the court, the agency adopted ‘action in rem’, a legal terminology, which means a “lawsuit or other legal action directed toward property, rather than toward a particular person.”

In contrast to an action in personam, an action in rem is a proprietary action brought against the object that is the subject of a dispute.”

According to the source, during preliminary investigation, the man whose company was linked to the property denied knowledge of it.

He said EFCC was not out to protect or shield any individual, saying: “I coordinated the investigation and I personally visited the site. In the process of looking at allegations against a former CBN Governor, we uncovered a receipt on the estate.

“But the receipt was not written in his name or linked to him in any way. We got in touch with the owner of the company who was issued receipt for the plot. He was not even aware the plot was bought in his name or 753 units of duplexes built. His company’s name was used without his knowledge.

“We made all claims before the court and filed documents as required of “action in rem” and the court followed due process in granting final forfeiture.

“Instead of going to court to look at the processes and how the court arrived at its decision, some want us to spoonfeed them.

“We followed due process in adopting action in rem on the seizure of the duplexes. The court records are there for anyone to obtain. People trade on ignorance and blackmail a lot”

The source added that the EFCC could not accuse the former CBN Governor of owning the property because nothing has linked him to the houses.

“Already, he has sued us on some the assets traced to him.

“But we have 753 duplexes which no one is claiming to own. In fact, the purported owner said he was not aware of it. We had to follow the law to seize the property in the public interest.”

“EFCC is not protecting or shielding anyone. Anyone interested in this should go to the court.”

The EFCC on Monday secured a court order to seize 753 units of duplexes in Abuja.

It is the single largest asset recovery by the commission.

But it was silent on the owner of the duplexes.

It, however, described the owner as a “former top brass”” of the government.

Spokesman, Dele Oyewale, insisted insisted that the agency’s action followed the law.

In a statement, he said: “The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), is following with keen interest, the flurry of reactions to its record-breaking recovery of 753 duplexes and other apartments on Plot 109 Cadastral Zone C09, Lokogoma District, Abuja.

“The commentaries of reform-minded Nigerians to the commission’s painstaking efforts in securing the final forfeiture of the Estate to the Federal Government of Nigeria, are appreciated.

“However, the denigration of such efforts is unacceptable and grossly un-charitable.

“The allegation of cover up of the identity of the promoters of the Estate stands logic on the head in the sense that the proceedings for the forfeiture of the Estate were in line with Section 17 of the Advance Fee Fraud Act which is a civil proceeding that allows for ‘action-in-rem’ rather than ‘action-in-personam’.

“The former allows legal actions against a property and not an individual, especially in a situation of an unclaimed property. This Act allows you to take up a forfeiture proceeding against a chattel that is not a juristic person. This is exactly what the commission did in respect of the Estate.

“The proceedings that yielded the final forfeiture of the Estate were products of actionable intelligence available to the commission. “The company flagged by our investigations denied ownership of the Estate following publications made in leading national newspapers.

“On the basis of this, the Commission approached the court for an order of final forfeiture which Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court granted on Monday, December 2.

The EFCC expressed its determination to sustain its fight against corruption.

The statement added: “Nigerians should gear up more against lapses and loopholes in our system that continue to make the nation vulnerable to corrupt tendencies.

“The EFCC will continue to safeguard the financial space of the nation against manipulators and organised brigandage.

“It is important to note that the substantive criminal investigation on the matter still continues.

“It will be unprofessional of the EFCC to go to town by mentioning names of individuals whose identities were not directly linked to any title document of the properties.

“The EFCC is unwavering in its no-sacred-cow approach to every matter and together we will make Nigeria greater.”

It said its efforts should be appreciated instead of being condemned.

It said: “The expectation of the EFCC from citizen Sowore is a patriotic appreciation of its efforts in securing such a landmark forfeiture.

“It is shocking that the activist is not concerned about the systemic lassitude and unhelpful permissiveness that allowed such a monstrous corrupt act in the first instance.”

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