Court gavel
By JOY ADARA, Abuja-
Federal High Court in Abuja has granted an application by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to temporarily take over the lands approved for the Goodluck Jonathan Legacy Model Housing Estate.
The ICPC had filed a motion ex-parte seeking an order temporarily forfeiting two plots of land in Cadastral Zone D12, Kaba District, Abuja, valued at N1,944,375,000.00 and N3,340,500,000.00 respectively.
The lands were suspected of being proceeds of an unlawful activity.
*Investigation Findings*
According to ICPC’s officer, Iliya Marcus, the commission received an intelligence report that the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) engaged a private developer, Good Earth Power Nigeria Limited, to construct 962 residential housing units under the National Housing Fund Scheme.
The investigation revealed that FMBN sought and obtained a loan facility of $65 million from Ecobank Limited for the project.
Marcus stated that the FMBN paid the full project amount of $65 million to Good Earth Power Nigeria Limited without a single house being constructed on the project site.
He added that the property developer was making clandestine moves to sell off the immovable property to unsuspecting members of the public.
Justice Mohammed Umar granted the interim forfeiture and questioned why the entire project sum was paid upfront without corresponding progress on the ground. The judge adjourned the matter until October 27 for a report of compliance.
The ICPC’s action is aimed at securing the land for the benefit of Nigerians and FMBN.
The commission’s investigation revealed that the property developer had allegedly fled and remained unreachable, leaving the project unfinished.
