The Federal Government is considering the relocation of some of its agencies that are still paying rent on the properties they currently occupy into some buildings seized from suspected looters.
The move is part of the guidelines being considered to reduce the high expenditure on rent and office buildings by the government’s agencies.
The Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, disclosed this at the opening of a meeting with members of the National Steering Committee of the Efficiency Unit.
The Federal Government had last Saturday released the list of recovered loot made between May 29, 2015 and May 25, 2016 with the document containing a total of 182 completed buildings and one uncompleted building.
A breakdown of the buildings showed that 33 buildings were recovered by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Commission, 146 by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and four by the Office of the National Security Adviser.
The minister, while lamenting the huge cost being incurred by the government on residential and office buildings, said that between 2012 and 2014, an average yearly sum of N3.55bn was spent on rent by the government.
The Efficiency Unit was set up by the minister last year to reduce the level of recurrent expenditure which according to the 2016 budget had an outlay of N2.65tn
The unit, headed by Mrs. Patience Oniha, was set up to engender transparency and reduce government’s expenditure through efficiency in procurement in the various ministries, departments and agencies.
She said that major savings were being expected in form of discounts from suppliers when the Bureau of Public Procurement concluded its assignment on the pooling of MDAs demands for standard products such as vehicles, computers, printers, photocopiers and stationery.
Adesoun said, “The average annual expenditure on rent for the three year period 2012 to 2014 was N3.55bn.
“The issuance of price guidelines and initiatives for reducing expenditure on rent on office and residential buildings will be the primary focus in the coming months.
“And to achieve that, we are already looking at using properties that were forfeited from recoveries and moving some of our agencies to occupy those properties rather than paying rent.”
The minister, however, called for cooperation from all stakeholders in both the public and private sector to ensure that Nigerians get value for money in the spending of government’s resources.
Properties seized by EFCC
A house belonging to a former Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Mohammed Umar (retd), located on 1853 Deng Xiano Ping Street, off Mahathir Mohammed Street, Asokoro extension Abuja. The property is worth N860m. Umar is in court for alleged N7bn fraud
A mansion located at 6, Ogun River Street, Maitama, Abuja, worth N1bn, was recovered from a former Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh (retd.)
A duplex located at 14 Adzope Crescent, Off Kumasi Crescent, Wuse II, Abuja, allegedly belonging to Badeh.
A house worth N260m located at 19 Kumasi Crescent, Wuse II, Abuja, and allegedly belonging to Badeh’s son.
A shopping mall at Plot 1386, Oda Crescent, Cadastral Zone A07, Wuse II, Abuja, said to be worth over N870m and allegedly belongs to Badeh.
A block of 12 luxury flats located on Agodogba Street, Park View Estate, Ikoyi, Lagos worth over N1.7bn. The property allegedly belongs to a former Chief of Accounts and Budgeting of the Nigerian Air Force, Air Vice Marshal J.B. Adigun
A block of luxury flats on Sinari Daranijo Street, Victoria Island, Lagos, worth N1.8bn, was also seized from Adigun as well as a parcel of land located on Bourdillon Drive, Ikoyi, worth N908m.
A set of four terrace houses on Agede Street, off Aminu Kano in the Wuse 2 area of Abuja was also seized from Adigun. The worth of the property was not stated.
A house located on Adeyemo Alakija Street, GRA Ikeja, near the Ghanaian High Commission, belonging to the immediate past Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Adesola Amosu (retd.), has also been sealed. It is worth over N200m.
A set of houses belonging to Amosu in the Badagry area of Lagos State was also seized.
An ultra-modern hospital, St. Solomon Health Care Limited, located on Adeniyi Jones Avenue in Ikeja, Lagos, was also seized from Amosu. It is said to be worth N85m. – Punch.
