Femi Falana, a senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN), has advised the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to stop sealing off assets belonging to suspects of financial crimes.
The lawyer gave the advice in Ikeja at the presentation of ‘Compendium of High-Profile Corruption and Financial Crimes Cases in Nigeria’.
Falana said sealing of properties while cases were still pending in courts does not do the public any good as the assets eventually lose economic value.
He said: “I do not subscribe to the locking up of assets or properties while a case is still pending in court. I do not think the EFCC or other anti-corruption agencies should be doing that.
“If somebody has stolen money to build a hospital, just like the one on Adeniyi Jones in Ikeja, somebody was alleged to have stolen to build the hospital worth about N2.5billion, which is sealed now.
“For me, you are not doing the public any good by just locking up the place and by putting your inscription: ‘Under Investigation’.
“Why don’t you allow it to function so that the place can benefit the people, because it is already acquired for public purpose.
“And this should go for all buildings too. People are looking for accommodation and you just lock up blocks of flat over cases still pending in court.
“And these cases may be in court for years. And by the time the cases are concluded, the premises you have sealed no longer have their value.
“The EFCC was set up to revive businesses not to liquidate them. You liquidate businesses by just getting some court orders. That to me, is not the way to fight corruption.”
Falana said the seized vehicles wasting away at EFCC offices is a cause for concern.
He suggested that the vehicles could be sold by the EFCC while the proceeds are kept in an account pending the determination of the cases involving their owners.
“If the case is finally resolved in favour of the suspects, they are given the money, if not, the money is forfeited to the government,” he said.
“That, I think, is better than allowing these vehicles to waste away while cases are being investigated or still pending in court.”
