By Seun Ibiyemi
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the immediate dissolution of the Presidential Implementation Committee (PIC) on the Alienation of Federal Government Properties, citing its involvement in multiple litigations and a departure from its original mandate.
The decision, announced in a statement on Thursday by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, transfers responsibility for all matters relating to the committee’s activities to the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi.
According to the Presidency, the committee, which was established in 2000 under the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, was created to oversee the privatisation, sale and lease of Federal Government landed assets under the government’s monetisation policy.
The committee was chaired by the then Minister of Housing and included representatives from the Ministries of Transportation, Justice, Health and Agriculture, as well as the Nigeria Police Force. Professor P.T. Ahire served as its pioneer secretary, with additional members drawn from both the public and private sectors.
The statement recalled that on March 22, 2001, the Federal Executive Council approved the establishment of a Panel of Inquiry to produce a White Paper to guide the implementation of recommendations relating to the committee’s operations.
The panel spent 21 months before submitting its report.
However, the Federal Government said it had become evident that the committee’s activities had gone beyond the scope of its original mandate, leading to numerous court cases across the country.
“After careful consideration, the Government has noted that the activities of the PIC had extended beyond its original mandate, resulting in multiple litigations across the country, and the continued existence of the Committee is no longer justified,” the statement said.
President Tinubu consequently directed that all issues relating to the committee be coordinated by the Attorney General of the Federation with effect from November 5, 2025.
The Presidency also ordered the former Secretary of the committee, B.S. Dutsin-Ma, to immediately cease acting on behalf of the dissolved committee and the Federal Government on all related matters.
The move is expected to centralise the handling of disputes and legal matters arising from the alienation of Federal Government properties under the supervision of the Office of the Attorney General.
