* to go after top 20 defaulters
The federal government has inaugurated a new task force to recover over N5trillion, being outstanding debts ,owed the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) by defaulting companies and individuals.
Vice President Yemi Osinbajo disclosed this at the Presidential Villa, Abuja during a meeting with board members and management of AMCON and selected heads of government agencies, a statement from the VP office noted.
According to the statement, the agencies involved include the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) and also the Permanent Secretaries of the Justice and Transport Ministries.
“To this effect, a special task force/committee, comprising of the Heads of AMCON, the EFCC, 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.
“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,” Prof. Osinbajo was quoted as saying at the meeting.
He said the task force should look at the top 20 AMCON defaulters closely and develop a plan of action that brings results.
It would be recalled that the Vice President had previously in May met with AMCON management to discuss how to resolve the issue.
According to the AMCON Chairman, Mr. Muiz Banire, SAN, almost 67 percent of the outstanding N5trillion debt is owed by just 20 individuals/entities.
Banire noted that the agency had been “trying its best in its attempt to recover this through the civil judicial process, but had encountered several challenges.”
Osinbajo however enjoined all the relevant agencies to re-strategize to achieve the desired results.
