The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, has revealed that many of the abandoned estates scattered across Abuja are owned by civil servants who siphoned public funds.
Speaking on Wednesday during a policy dialogue themed “Critical Issues Affecting Nigeria’s Real Estate Ecosystem,” organised by Law Corridor in Abuja, Olukoyede lamented the surge in uncompleted estates that have remained untouched for over a decade.
According to him, the EFCC has launched a special investigative team to track down the true owners of these properties across the country.
“I have set up the team. We will start visiting all the estates, not only in Abuja but across Nigeria. We want to know who owns what,” Olukoyede said.
He added that preliminary findings suggest many of these estates were developed using stolen public funds.
“It will shock you that some of these estates have been abandoned for 10 to 20 years. They just take it to a level and abandon it.
Nobody knows what is going on. What we have been able to gather is that most of these estates were funded by civil servants who have stolen money,” he explained.
Olukoyede noted that once these corrupt officials leave public office and no longer have access to stolen funds, the projects are deserted, leaving developers struggling to find investors to complete them.
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The EFCC boss further disclosed that the agency has recently filed for the forfeiture of about 15 such estates and warned that more legal actions will follow.
“We have gotten more intelligence, too. Some of you sitting in this room, probably some of those estates belong to you,” he said.
“But very soon, we expect to meet you in court because there is no way we will develop this sector if we continue with that attitude.”
He also warned lawyers and real estate developers against aiding individuals involved in money laundering, urging them to uphold ethical standards and transparency in property transactions.
Meanwhile, Afam Osigwe, President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), emphasized the need for a centralised property ownership verification system to address issues of transparency and credibility in the real estate sector.
He also cautioned against arbitrary revocation of land titles, especially over unpaid ground rent, noting that such practices could discourage foreign investment.
Ayokunle Erin, head of the real estate, construction, and infrastructure practice group at Law Corridor, highlighted Nigeria’s growing housing deficit, currently estimated at 17 to 20 million units, with only about 5,000 units delivered in Abuja in 2024 — meeting less than 10% of the city’s housing demand.
“These gaps reflect deep-rooted policy failures, regulatory lapses, and legal ambiguities that continue to embolden fraudsters, quacks, and unlicensed agents,” Erin said.
The EFCC’s renewed commitment to investigating the funding and ownership of abandoned estates could mark a turning point in Nigeria’s fight against real estate-related corruption and illicit financial flows.
