The Senate, on Wednesday, passed the Asset Management
Corporation of Nigeria Amendment bill.
The passage of the bill followed the consideration of a
report by the Committee on Banking, Insurance, and Other Financial
Institutions.
The amendment bill passed by the chamber empowers the Assets
Management Corporation of Nigeria to, amongst others, take possession, manage
or sell all properties traced to debtors, whether or not such assets or
property is used as security/collateral for obtaining the loan in particular.
It also empowers the corporation to access the Special Tribunal established by the BOFIA, 2020 for dealing with financial related matters.
Chairman of the Committee, Senator Uba Sani (APC, Kaduna
Central), in his presentation said the Committee engaged with stakeholders such
as AMCON, Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning; Central
Bank of Nigeria; and Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation.
According to the lawmaker, the stakeholders in their
submissions pushed for AMCON to be empowered to take possession, manage,
foreclose or sell, transfer, assign or otherwise of property used as security
for eligible bank assets among others, adding that, “this will provide for a
quicker, easier and legitimate process of assets disposal.”
The Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege (APC, Delta
Central), during the clause-by-clause consideration of the bill sought to know
the rationale behind the recommendation of the Committee in clause two, which
empowers AMCON to take possession of assets outside of those used as collateral
in obtaining a loan request.
He said, “the essence of collateral, is that in the even of
default, you lose that asset. What I am reading here is that in addition to
seizing that asset, they (AMCON) want to go beyond that to every other asset or
property that is traceable to the debtor. I think I need some clarifications to
that.”
Another lawmaker, Senator Bassey Albert Akpan (PDP,
Akwa-Ibom North East) argued that, “you cannot go outside the asset presented
for the facility.”
Senator Adamu Aliero, however, explained that “Mr. Chairman,
if you can recall, during debate on this bill, Senators made it abundantly
clear that these debtors are taking government money, and they are using it
freely and going free, and we need stringent measures to be enforced to recover
the money.”
The Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, at this point called for
voting on the contentious clause, which eventually was adopted by lawmakers in
the majority, following Lawan’s ruling.
After the passage of the bill, Senators Bassey Akpan and Chukwuka Utazi, while relying on a Point of Order put forward by the former, contested the ruling of the Senate President by requesting for a division.
Interjecting, the Senate President said, “when we come to
legislate, we all come here with a very clear mind, that we are doing this for
our country, we don’t have any interest but the national interest.
“[And] when a majority of our colleagues here in their
judgement feel that this is the right thing to do, that’s the majority view,
unless we have any cause to reverse ourselves.
“If the majority of Senators say that this is what they feel
should be done to remedy a situation that requires our attention, I think we
should allow that.
“[And] besides, I believe we had explanations from the
Committee members who went through all the processes, so, I believe that we
should let it go.
“Let the people go to court to test it, but our hope and
desire are for AMCON to be able to recover huge sums of money – trillions that
people have taken and now is on the head of Nigerians. And, it is criminal,
really. People will consciously take money. I will advise that we stick to our
decision.”
Bala Ibn Na’Allah (APC, Kebbi South) and Opeyemi Bamidele
(APC, Ekiti Central), advocated for the inclusion of a proviso amid the AMCON
amendment, so as to give it precedence over any other law that may be used to
cite an instance of conflict.
“We have to put a clause to say, ‘notwithstanding the
provisions obtained in any other law to enable the law take effect,” Na’Allah
suggested.
Chukwuka Utazi, on his part, kicked against the clause
empowering AMCON to take possession of assets traced to debtors, explaining
that, “most of the banks that have those bad debts colluded with the customers
in doing that in the first place.”
Senator George Thompson Sekibo (PDP, Rivers East), while
citing the Senate rules, observed that, “it will be out of order to reconsider
any specific question, upon which the Senate has come to a conclusion during
the current session, except upon a substantive motion or decision.”
“All the discussion we are making on it now is of no value,
they are not supposed to be recorded because we have come to a decision on it.
It may be wrongly or rightly, but we have ended it,” Sekibo added.
The Senate President, thereafter, ruled Senator Akpan’s call
for a division out of order, against the backdrop of the provision of the
Senate Rule cited by Sekibo.
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