By Adedapo Adesanya
The Ministry of Finance, Budget, and National Planning has charged the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) to ensure it does everything within the powers conferred on it in the newly amended Act to recover the N5 trillion debt incurred by some Nigerians and organisations.
Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, gave this charge at a quarterly briefing of the Ministry of Finance held in Abuja at the weekend.
Business Post had reported that many agencies of the federal government had indicated willingness to collaborate with AMCON in its quest to recover the huge debts owed by a few individuals and corporations in the country.
Recently, President Muhammadu Buhari signed the amended 2019 AMCON Act into law which gives the corporation additional powers to deal with the debtors.
“AMCON must ensure that the debts are recovered before the sunset, which is around the corner. If at sunset AMCON fails to recover the huge bad loans, the debt will become government problem, which the government is not willing to carry.
“Therefore, everything must be done to ensure that AMCON recovers the debt from the obligors because it will have a huge positive impact on the economy,” the Minister said.
She also called on all the agencies under the ministry’s supervision to always remember the 11 priority areas of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration in the discharge of their duties.
Adding his input on the issue, the Director-General, Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Mr Mamman Ahmadu, has declared the agency’s willingness to collaborate with AMCON in the quest to recover the debt, which he said would help liberate the economy as well as improve the commonwealth of the nation.
Mr Ahmadu said that the bureau has intensified its due diligence process and would ensure that those to be awarded contract from the government were scrutinised to establish that they were not among the defaulters.
Speaking for his agency, the Chairman of Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Professor Bolaji Owasanoye, who doubled as the chairman of the Inter-Agency Presidential Committee set up by the Vice President to recover AMCON debt, called on the other agencies of the government to ensure that they pressure the debtors to repay the debt.
He revealed that the Inter-Agency Presidential Committee, which includes the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC); the Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU); Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC); Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN); Ministry of Justice; ICPC and AMCON have concluded plans to expand the dragnet of the debtors by looking at those who facilitated the loans on the side of the banks and those who benefited from the proceeds.
A representative of AMCON, An Executive Director at AMCON, Dr. Eberechukwu Uneze, at the meeting reassured the minister of the commitment of the management and staff of AMCON to deliver on the mandate in line with the expectations of the federal government.
He also disclosed that the corporation has made remarkable progress working with the Inter-Agency Committee set up by the Presidency to enable AMCON recover the over N5 trillion debt burden, just as AMCON is in partnership with over 228 Asset Management Partners (AMPs) to hasten recovery from the defaulters.
Dipo Olowookere