The House of Representatives on Wednesday ordered a full-scale investigation into abandoned federal government lands and buildings across the country, estimated at over ₦20 trillion.
The House passed the resolution after adopting a motion of urgent public importance moved by the Minority Leader, Rep. Kingsley Chinda (PDP/Rivers), during Wednesday’s plenary.
Rep. Chinda cited Sections 88 and 89 of the 1999 Constitution and lamented the waste of public assets, stressing that the probe aims to recover and repurpose valuable national properties currently left to rot.
He recalled a 2021 report by the Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveyors, which listed about 11,866 abandoned federal projects – roughly 63% of all government projects initiated since independence.
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Among the notable structures are the Federal Secretariat Complex in Ikoyi, Lagos, the Millennium Tower in Abuja, the National Library headquarters also in Abuja, and the Nigerian Aluminium Smelting Company in Akwa Ibom State, among others.
Rep. Chinda expressed frustration that the Presidential Implementation Committee on Federal Government Properties, set up in 2000, had failed to deliver its final report 25 years later – raising serious concerns about transparency and accountability.
He urged the federal government to consider public–private partnerships (PPPs) as a strategy to revive these properties and stop further decay.
After deliberations, the House unanimously adopted the motion, mandating an ad hoc committee to verify the properties’ current status, assess recovery options, and report back within six weeks.
