The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has directed the Attorney General of the Federation to strengthen existing laws aimed at criminalising the unlawful removal of government assets during the night.
This initiative is designed to tackle the rising issue of individuals, including scrap metal vendors, miners, and cart pushers, who illegally extract valuable components like iron and metal from public infrastructure, such as roads and bridges, for resale to recyclers.
Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, shared this information after a closed-door FEC meeting on Monday, May 12, 2025, which was chaired by President Bola Tinubu.
Idris expressed the government’s growing concern about the increasing frequency of these illegal activities, noting that they pose significant risks to public safety and the maintenance of critical infrastructure.
The government is exploring ways to enhance legislative measures to combat these crimes effectively. Although some laws already exist to address such offences as theft of government assets, the FEC believes that more robust and comprehensive actions are required to discourage these illicit activities and ensure the protection of government property.
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cc: Daily Post Ng
