For owing N900 million, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain, Buba Galadima forfeited his two houses in Abuja and assets of his company, Bedko Nigeria Limited.
By order of Justice A.I. Chikere of Federal High Court sitting in Abuja in Suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1136/2019, the Assets Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON) had been empowered to seize the properties.
The houses are located at House No. 15, Addis Ababa Crescent, Wuse Zone 4, Abuja, and House No. 4, Bangui Street, Wuse 2 in the FCT.
Galadima and Bedko Nigeria Limited owe AMCON N900 million through a loan purchased during the first phase of Eligible Bank Assets (EBAs) from Unity Bank Plc in 2011.
AMCON said it had since then tried to get the obligors to repay the debt but all to no avail.
An engineer-cum-politician, Galadima was Director-General of the Nigeria Maritime Agency (NMA) from 1996 to 1998 and National Secretary of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), one of the parties that formed the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). As National Secretary of CPC, he was one of the signatories to the merger agreement between some political parties that birthed the APC. He is now a chieftain of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
AMCON said that in line with the Court judgement and relevant sections of AMCON’s Act as amended, having taken over the properties, it would take all necessary actions, including assets take-over, liquidation, winding-up and garnishee proceedings against Bedko Nigeria and its directors.
The seizure of Buba Galadima’s properties is expected to be one of many to take place this year given the wider powers the President conferred on AMCON last year.
The Federal Government had in 2019 constituted an inter-agency committee to help AMCON recover more than N5 trillion owed it in debt.
Aside from the inter-agency committee constituted, President Muhammadu Buhari also signed the 2019 Amended AMCON Act into law, which gave AMCON additional powers to go after all obligors of the corporation no matter how highly placed.
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