The Federal Executive Council, FEC, on Monday directed the Attorney General of the Federation, AGF, and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, to strengthen/pass legislations that will criminalise usurpers of government assets under the cover of the night in the country.
The directive is aimed at mitigating the unwholesome activities of scrap metal vendors, miners, and cart pushers, among others, who indulge in stealing critical government assets, including manholes on the road.
Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idriss, disclosed this while briefing State House correspondents after the closed-door cabinet meeting presided over by President Bola Tinubu at the Council Chamber, Presidential Villa, Abuja.
He said the council expressed concern over the development, hence the decision to criminalise the activity.
According to him: “There’s also a conversation, I mean, a discussion around some scrap metal vendors, or miners, or whatever you call them. We have seen increased activity among people who unscrupulously go to steal some of these government assets on the road, by the bridges, and other critical metals that they take to go and sell.
“The federal government is already mulling the possibility of criminalising this. Of course, we already have some of these laws in existence, but we are looking at them in depth.
“And the Attorney General Federation has been directed to look at that. There’s an increased activity, you know, that the government has noted where people go, especially in the cover of the night.
“They will remove some of these government assets, iron, metals and scraps, and then go to sell them to other individuals who in turn recycle them and bring them back to the market.
“The government feels very much concerned and is taking a closer look at how this can be mitigated going forward.”
