President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the immediate dissolution of the Presidential Implementation Committee (PIC) on the Alienation of Federal Government Properties, bringing an end to the committee’s over two decades of operations.
The decision, announced in a statement issued on Thursday by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, transferred all matters relating to the committee’s activities to the Honourable Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN).
According to the Presidency, the Attorney General will henceforth coordinate all issues relating to the committee’s responsibilities following the dissolution.
The Presidential Implementation Committee was established in 2000 during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo to oversee the privatisation, sale and lease of Federal Government landed assets under the Federal Government’s monetisation policy.
The committee was chaired by the then Minister of Housing and included representatives from the Ministries of Transportation, Justice, Health, Agriculture, as well as the Nigeria Police Force. Professor P. T. Ahire, then a Deputy Director in the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, served as its pioneer secretary, while other members were 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 concerning the committee’s operations. The panel worked for 21 months before submitting its report.
The Presidency explained that after reviewing the committee’s activities, the Federal Government concluded that the PIC had exceeded its original mandate, leading to multiple litigations across the country.
It noted that the continued existence of the committee was no longer justified, prompting President Tinubu to order its dissolution.
The President also directed that the committee’s former Secretary, B. S. Dutsin-Ma, should immediately cease acting on behalf of the dissolved committee and the Federal Government on matters relating to its former responsibilities.
Although the directive takes immediate effect, the Presidency stated that the Attorney General will coordinate all related activities in line with the President’s approval effective from November 5, 2025.
