Benue govt moves to retrieve state lands linked to fraud, warns illegal occupants

The Benue State Government, through the Benue Investment and Property Company Limited (BIPC), has ramped up moves to repossess state lands believed to have been improperly acquired by individuals and corporate bodies across the state.

Among the properties reclaimed is the well-known Yaman Park in Wurukum, Makurdi, a 7,000-square-metre leisure facility valued at roughly ₦100 million. Officials noted that the once vibrant recreational space had deteriorated into a hotspot for unlawful activities.

Two other plots situated near Tse-Ayu along George Akume Way, Makurdi, have also been recovered.

Speaking to journalists on Wednesday, BIPC’s Group Managing Director, Dr. Raymond Asemakaha, who led the retrieval exercise, issued a firm warning that the company would aggressively pursue anyone illegally occupying or mismanaging state assets.

“We are going to clamp down hard on individuals and organizations holding government assets that are not performing.
These are public assets meant to create jobs and generate revenue for the people of Benue State,” Asemakaha said.

He explained that BIPC operates under the authority of Edict 10 of 1995, which empowers the corporation to supervise and manage state-owned investments to ensure they deliver tangible benefits.

On one of the reclaimed properties along George Akume Way, Asemakaha said the one-hectare parcel was purchased on November 2, 2016, but an internal review ordered upon his assumption of office exposed troubling irregularities.

“We discovered that BIPC made a proxy investment which yielded no return. During our investigation, we traced the funds used for the purchase to a closed account that had to be reopened.
The money was eventually traced to this land, and we have now recovered it,” he stated.

He added that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) became involved when it emerged that some persons had attempted to secretly offload the property.

“EFCC is already on the case to foreclose the transaction. We had to move in quickly because they were trying to sell the land,” he said.

Asemakaha further disclosed that another plaza on the same axis, bought on October 20, 2016, was linked to questionable transactions allegedly facilitated with the involvement of certain financial institutions.

He cautioned prospective buyers against attempting to acquire any of the reclaimed assets, noting that such moves would be entirely at their own risk.

“Anyone intending to buy these lands does so at his or her own peril. The properties belong to the Benue State Government, BIPC, and the people of Benue. We have valid title documents, including Certificate of Occupancy,” he emphasized.

He also revealed that several other government properties currently under lease — many of them allegedly secured by former political office holders through “systematic manipulation” without any credible plan for development — are now under review.

“If you are holding government assets and they are not performing, we will take them back. You cannot hold our assets in pretence and go home to sleep while the state suffers,” Asemakaha warned.

Describing the current action as the start of a larger recovery push, he assured that more assets would be reclaimed as investigations continue.

“This is just the tip of the iceberg. There are many more government assets we are going to recover in the overriding interest of the Benue people,” he declared.

While acknowledging that legal battles may arise, he urged lawyers to act in the state’s interest. “We may face litigation, but I appeal to lawyers to put the overriding interest of Benue State above self-interest,” he said.