The Benue State Government, through the Benue Investment and Property Company Limited (BIPC), has recovered two additional properties along the George Akume Way, Makurdi, in its ongoing drive to reclaim assets procured with company funds.

Speaking with journalists during the recovery exercise, the Group Managing Director of BIPC, Dr Raymond Asemakaha, explained that the action was part of a broader asset recovery and verification initiative approved by Governor Hyacinth Alia.

The properties, according to Dr Asemakaha, were purchased in 2016 with diverted funds linked to the company and uncovered through an asset audit and tracking of diverted funds with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

He noted that “the management of BIPC would no longer allow properties acquired with taxpayers’ money to remain in the hands of private individuals or be lost through administrative lapses”.

Dr Asemakaha explained that “the recovery followed due process, including documentation checks and physical verification of the properties”, stressing that the company is acting strictly within the confines of the law.

The BIPC helmsman warned that individuals holding government assets without utilising them optimally for the benefit of the state would have such properties revoked, stressing that the overriding interest of the government is to develop the assets for the economic benefit of the people.

He disclosed that more recoveries would follow as BIPC continues to audit its asset portfolio across the state in line with Edict 10 of 1995.

The GMD further stated that “the reclaimed properties would be properly documented, secured, and put to productive use in line with the company’s mandate to drive investment and generate revenue for the state”.

Officials of BIPC, accompanied by security personnel, were seen taking possession of the properties and marking them as recovered assets of the company.

The recovery exercise is part of ongoing reforms aimed at repositioning BIPC for efficiency, transparency, and improved service delivery, while safeguarding government investments for the benefit of the people of Benue State.