•MOFI
The House of Representatives Committee on Public Assets, yesterday, in Abuja put the value of federal yovernment assets at $100 billion, insisting that there is an urgent need to safeguard the assets against looting.
The lawmakers are also worried over the wrong valuation of the assets as they stressed the need for proper documentation of what the Nigerian government owns across the country, reports The Guardian.
The Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) stated that federal government assets stand at an estimated N18 trillion, with employees of 15,000 and 52 shareholding entities.
The committee chairman, Ademorin Kuye, said estimates from the agency are inaccurate, adding that there are gaps in valuation and documentation that undervalued the assets.
Insisting that the country is ready to ensure that all federal government assets are recovered from looters, Kuye said, noting that Nigeria has been on the assessment with its public assets.
He said: “What we have in this country in terms of assets has not been properly valued. On the website of the MOFI, it claims that Federal Government assets are worth $18 billion; but that is not true. From my estimate, the value is over $100 billion.
“When we put all this on record, in a proper asset register and harmonisation of the laws with a legislative backing for MOFI, they can then efficiently perform their responsibilities, and this will help the country.” He assured that the processes would be transparent, fair and free from manipulative practices.
Kuye said there was a need to overhaul the country’s asset documentation systems, noting that the prevailing record is inadequate and is leading to significant financial losses. Kuye said it was time to move towards a future where every asset is meticulously recorded, valued and fully acknowledged.
“This endeavor leads us to the untapped potential lying dormant within our underused assets. Picture these assets as hidden treasures, merely awaiting the right strategy to transform them into vital cogs contributing to our economic machinery. Through rigorous audit and strategic planning, we will unlock their potential, channeling their latent value back into the economy.
“Our efforts go beyond mere management; they extend to ensuring that our public assets significantly contribute to the national GDP. Accurate documentation, valuation, and strategic utilisation of these assets are pivotal in painting a true picture of our nation’s economic strength,” he said.
The Executive Director, the Ministry of Finance Incorporated, Oluwakemi Babalogbon, called on the lawmakers to assist the agency with laws to address political intervention, corruption and corporate governance issues.
Also speaking, a member of the Reps, Ibrahim Ayokunle Isiaka, noted that the retreat aimed to put a task on government and other stakeholders to improve development through public assets.
“We have many agencies of government who are still operating from hired quarters and if we have a permanent feature of assets, why can’t we now allocate those agencies, those buildings so that it can be useful to them, and they will not be paying rent.
