The Federal Executive Council has approved a bill that seeks to, among other things, create an agency that will be saddled with the responsibility of managing proceeds of crimes in Nigeria.
With Wednesday’s approval of the bill titled ‘Proceeds of Crime Recovery and Management Agency Bill,’ the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN), was directed to transmit same to the National Assembly for the purpose of passing it into law.
Malami disclosed this to State House correspondents at the end of the weekly meeting of the council presided over by the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari.
Buhari presided over the virtual meeting from the Council Chamber of the Presidential Villa, Abuja with some ministers in attendance while others participated from their offices.
According to the minister of justice, the current situation in the country is that proceeds of crime are currently are with multiple government agencies.
He said after the passage of the bill and the creation of the agency, the organization would be solely responsible for managing the proceeds of crimes in Nigeria.
Malami added that once there is a budget line for recovered assets directed by the President, the agency to be created would be in a position to provide information to the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning on demand concerning what amount is available for budget purposes, thereby establishing the desired transparency which has not been available before now.
