The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has handed over 1,452 hostel items recovered from proceeds of crime to the Federal Ministry of Education for distribution to Federal Unity Colleges across the country, in a move aimed at improving student accommodation and ensuring recovered public assets benefit Nigerians.
The items, which include 501 double-step bunk beds, 939 mattresses and 12 wooden beds with mattresses, were formally presented in Abuja by the Chairman of the EFCC, Ola Olukoyede, to the Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa. The commission said the assets were recovered during its nationwide anti-cybercrime operation known as “Operation Eagle Flush.”
Speaking during the handover ceremony, Olukoyede said the recovered assets had been legally forfeited to the Federal Government and were being redirected to the education sector in line with President Bola Tinubu’s directive that proceeds of crime should be converted into projects that directly improve the lives of citizens, particularly young people.
He described Operation Eagle Flush as the largest single anti-cybercrime operation ever carried out by the commission, revealing that it led to the arrest of 792 suspects, including 193 foreign nationals, who were investigated, prosecuted and convicted before the foreign nationals were deported after serving their prison terms.
According to the EFCC chairman, the latest intervention reflects the Federal Government’s commitment to transparency and accountability in the management of recovered assets. He assured Nigerians that every forfeited asset would continue to be deployed for projects that serve the public interest.
Olukoyede also highlighted previous interventions in the education sector funded through recovered assets, including the transfer of a forfeited university facility that now operates as the Federal University of Applied Sciences, Kachia, Kaduna State. He further disclosed that proceeds of recovered assets had supported the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND), enabling more than 1.4 million students to access educational financing.
Receiving the items, Minister of Education Tunji Alausa commended the EFCC for its proactive efforts in combating corruption, particularly procurement fraud and cybercrime. He said education remains central to the Federal Government’s vision of building a $1 trillion economy through investments in human capital.
Alausa noted that the donated beds and mattresses would significantly improve accommodation in Federal Unity Colleges, describing the education sector as one of the biggest beneficiaries of the government’s asset recovery programme. He pledged that the ministry would ensure the items are distributed transparently and used to enhance students’ welfare across the country.
