The Abuja Zonal Command of the Economic Financial Crimes Commission has recovered 324 houses and documentations of the properties that were meant for Kano State pensioners.
This came as a result of an EFCC probe into an N4.1 billion Pension Trust Fund that had been denied to retirees by many Kano State government administrations.
A petition over the purported theft of pension money in the state was filed by a group called “Concerned Kano State Workers and Pensioners,” which prompted the EFCC investigation.
The development was made public in a statement on Monday by Dele Oyewale, the anti-graft agency’s spokeswoman.
He mentioned that the impacted parties received the properties after Justice Inyang Ekwo of the Federal High Court in Abuja issued a final forfeiture judgment.
Oyewale said, “Findings by the EFCC showed that the state government entered into a tripartite agreement with the Kano State Pension Trust Fund to build housing estates for an aggregate sum of N41bn, out of which the Pension Trust Fund was to contribute N4.1bn.
“However, the contribution of the pensioners was used to build the houses in three estates located in Sheikh Ja’afar Mahmud Adam Bandirawo city, Sheikh Nasiru Kabara (Amana) city and Sheikh Khalifa Ishaq Rabiu city, all in Kano state and two former governors of the state fraudulently discounted and sold the houses to their cronies and associates, leaving the pension trustees with low budget and uncompleted houses.
“The EFCC stepped in and upon completion of the investigation, filed for and acquired a final forfeiture order of the 324 properties to the Kano State Pension Fund Trustees.
“While handing over the documents of the 324 properties worth N4.1bn to the pensioners on Monday, March 18, 2024, the Abuja Zonal Commander of the EFCC, Adeniyi Adebayo, assured that the EFCC would continue to do its best to rid the nation of fraudulent practices.
“Representatives of the Kano State Pension Board, Hassan Aminu, Kubra Bichi and Salisu Abubakar, who received the documents on behalf of the workers and pensioners, expressed delight and joy with the EFCC for assisting them in recovering their houses.”
