article · GOMBE JOURNAL OF ADMINISTRATION AND MANAGEMENT (GJAM)
Asset recovery has become a key international mechanism to combat public corruption and the diversion of state resources, which undermine state stability in developing nations. In Nigeria, asset recovery was introduced to accelerate the repatriation of stolen assets, primarily driven by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. An evaluation of this strategy, benchmarked against practices in the United States and the United Kingdom, shows that asset recovery remains a relatively new practice in Nigeria. Current efforts are hampered by inadequate legislation and non-disclosure of accurate financial information by suspects. Politically exposed persons frequently exploit political immunity and financial resources to delay judicial proceedings. To deter corruption and improve asset repatriation, the research highlights the need to reform the criminal justice framework and establish stronger legal structures that enable the direct seizure and forfeiture of illicit assets.
The diversion of public resources threatens the stability and growth of developing nations. Improving legal frameworks for asset recovery ensures stolen funds can be repatriated to support national development. Establishing clear avenues for seizure and forfeiture removes the financial incentives for corruption, weakening the capacity of politically protected actors to evade accountability.
The abstract focuses on policy analysis, statutory reforms, and judicial processes for regulatory and law enforcement bodies like the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. It provides policy-level recommendations rather than a technology or market product, and the abstract does not indicate a commercialisation pathway.
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Assets recovery has emerged as one of the most important tools in the fight against corruption. In recent years, it has received significant attention from the international community. The theft by public officials and other powerful interests of state resources has a major impact on nation building and the stability of the state, especially in developing countries. The strategy was recently introduced in Nigeria with a view to quick repatriation of Nigeria assets. In view of the above, the present paper examines the effort of EFCC in asset recovery and forfeiture, the methodology adopted is mainly content analysis informed by review of literature. The study examines the application of the asset recovery strategy in both the U.S. and the UK with a view to drawing lessons for Nigeria. The findings showed that asset recovery is a new phenomenon in Nigeria with inadequate and weak legislation. Also there is failure of the suspects to disclose accurate information on their assets. The study recommends among others that the criminal justice system should be strengthened, reformed and transformed. There should also be legal structure for depriving criminals from acquiring illicit wealth because most politically exposed persons have political immunity and have the means to evade or delay trials. However, where assets are seized or forfeited, it will be in their best interest not to loot public funds or avoid the delay in trials.
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DOI: 10.64290/gjam.v1i1.873
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