In a bold move that seeks to merge anti-corruption gains with social welfare, the House of Representatives has urged the Federal Government to allocate a forfeited estate formerly linked to ex-Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele to low-income earners, internally displaced persons (IDPs), and other vulnerable Nigerians.
The call came after the House, during a plenary session on Tuesday, adopted a motion moved by Rep. Jafaru Gambo Leko (Bauchi) titled “Need for Transparent and Equitable Allocation of Forfeited Abuja Estate Handed Over to the Ministry of Housing by the EFCC.”
According to the motion, the estate comprises 753 duplexes and apartments located on Plot 109, Cadastral Zone C09, in the Lokogoma district of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja. The property spans over 150,000 square metres and was declared forfeited to the Federal Government by a final order of the Federal High Court. It has since been handed over by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development.
Reports indicate that the handover occurred in May, under a presidential directive for the completion and allocation of the estate to eligible Nigerians.
Rep. Leko described the recovery as “a significant milestone in Nigeria’s anti-corruption efforts,” and emphasized that if properly managed, the estate could play a meaningful role in reducing the country’s crippling housing deficit estimated at over 17 million units nationwide.
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While expressing optimism about the estate’s potential, Leko and other proponents of the motion raised a caution: without a transparent and equitable allocation framework, the properties risk ending up in the hands of privileged elites, undermining the very objectives of asset recovery.
The House therefore directed the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development to develop and publish a clear allocation framework prioritising low-income earners, IDPs, and other vulnerable groups. The ministry has been given a 60-day window to submit a comprehensive plan, including selection criteria, proposed usage, and accountability mechanisms.
Additionally, the House’s Committee on Housing and Habitat is tasked with liaising with the ministry to oversee the process, ensuring adherence to principles of fairness, transparency, and equity, and to report back within four weeks for further legislative review.
One of the proposals mooted by lawmakers is the creation of a national database of forfeited assets, enabling public trackability and civil society oversight, a mechanism they believe would help restore public confidence in Nigeria’s anti-corruption efforts.
In making their case, proponents of the motion invoked the constitutional mandate of governments to promote citizens’ welfare, including the provision of adequate housing, as captured in Chapter II of the 1999 Constitution. They argued that turning recovered ill-gotten assets into social infrastructure as opposed to selling them off or reallocating them to elites, would provide tangible benefits to ordinary Nigerians and strengthen faith in governance.
If well executed, the allocation could become a landmark template in Nigeria’s effort to blend restitution with social justice: transforming seized properties into affordable homes for those on the margins.
