Citizens raise affordability, transparency questions as FG plans to sell Emefiele’s 753-unit housing estate in Abuja
The Nigerian government has announced plans to sell a 753-unit housing estate in Abuja, which was confiscated from former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Godwin Emefiele, following a court forfeiture order.
The estate, comprising duplexes and other apartments, is located on Plot 109, Cadastral Zone C09, Lokogoma District, Abuja, spanning over 150,000 square meters.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) officially handed over the recovered property to the Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development on Monday, May 20, 2025, at the ministry’s headquarters in Mabushi, Abuja.
This handover followed a final forfeiture order granted by Justice Jude Onwuegbuzie of the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Apo in December 2024, which was preceded by an interim forfeiture order in November 2024.
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Emefiele’s subsequent motion to reclaim the estate was dismissed by the court in April 2025, clearing the legal hurdles for the government to take possession.
The estate was originally linked to Godwin Emefiele and his associates, who allegedly acquired it using illicit funds obtained through kickbacks from foreign exchange allocations and contracts awarded during his tenure at the CBN.
The EFCC’s investigation revealed that Emefiele purportedly negotiated kickbacks for allocating foreign exchange to companies and received kickbacks from CBN contractors, with these illicit funds then used to acquire the estate.
The court ruled that the property was “reasonably suspected to have been acquired with proceeds of unlawful activities.” This recovery marks the EFCC’s largest single-asset recovery since its establishment in 2003.
Upon taking delivery, the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Dangiwa, praised the EFCC’s commitment to asset recovery and anti-corruption efforts.
He announced that the Ministry, in collaboration with the EFCC, will conduct a joint familiarization tour to assess the current state of the estate. This assessment will include thorough integrity and structural evaluations of all buildings and associated infrastructure to confirm their safety and suitability for habitation.
A comprehensive technical evaluation will also be undertaken to determine the cost and scope of completing the estate’s infrastructure, such as perimeter fencing, roads, drainage, security posts, shopping, and recreation centers.
The ministry plans to offer the units for sale both to the public and for special government needs.
For the public sale component, the ministry said a transparent and competitive process will be adopted, which will include nationwide advertisement and the use of the “Renewed Hope Portal” where interested Nigerians can submit their Expressions of Interest.
President Bola Tinubu has directed that the recovered estate be completed and made available to the Nigerian public through a transparent and accountable process.
The EFCC chairman, Olanipekun Olukoyede, emphasized that the handover demonstrates the government’s resolve to fight corruption and ensure that recovered proceeds of crime are applied transparently for the benefit of Nigerians, preventing “looted assets to be looted again.”
The EFCC will continue to monitor the ministry’s efforts to complete the estate and provide periodic reports to President Bola Tinubu.
Stakeholders in the housing sector have called for utmost transparency in the sale process. While commending the public sale initiative, concerns have been raised about ensuring the properties go to the right public and not exclusively to government officials or their cronies.
Questions have also been posed regarding the affordability of the units for average Nigerians, whether the actual value of the properties will be a factor in the sale, and the transparency of units allocated for government needs.
Some stakeholders suggested remodeling the large houses into smaller units to increase the number of available homes and reduce the housing deficit.
