The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has clarified that the auction of forfeited vehicles was disrupted by “glitches”, citing the number of participants involved in the exercise as a possible factor.
EFCC had in a statement on Monday, January 20, 2025 announced that it will conduct the e-auction of forfeited vehicles.
“The General Public is hereby notified that the @officialEFCC through its appointed Auctioneers will conduct e-Auction of the under listed vehicles that are subject of final Forfeiture orders in accordance with the EFCC (Establishment) Act, 2004, Public Procurement Act, 2007 and the Proceeds of Crime (Recovery & Management) Act, 2022,” it stated.
However, there were several complaints from some Nigerians, which led to questioning the legitimacy of the auctioning process.
One of the participants, Austin Dakor with the X (formerly Twitter) handle wrote:”Dear @officialEFCC. The manipulation in the recent car auction by Areogun Resources Nig Ltd is blatant! Winnings bids were altered on their website after bidding closed. Follow thread for screenshots. Transparency is demanded.
“Luckily I took screenshots of both the bids I won outright, and those I was expecting to be second because the first bids were outrageous. Few minutes after the close of the bidding Areogun Resouces Nig Ltd shuts down their site. I smelt a foul play but I wanted to believe in #transparency.
“Dear @officialEFCC How did a closed bid suddenly get a new bid,” he asked, adding that “and who is “Nwanebu Elias”. We demand integrity and transparency.”
Another X user, Daniel Momoh with the handle @Dan_Momoh stated: Dear @officialEFCC it’s a pity that you & your auctioneer cheated us out a legitimate process we engaged in yesterday where I won 4 four different vehicles namely: Toyota Venza – 2,670,000, Lexus ES350 – 2,000,000, Lexus IS250 – 2,520,000, Toyota – Camry – 1,500,000.
“Woke up this morning to see that my name has been replaced with another name, blocked me from assessing the website via my account that I opened prior to the bidding.”
However, Momoh later disclosed that his bids have been restored on the auctioneer’s platform.
“Thank you to everyone who commented, Retweeted and also tag the relevant agencies of government involved. Kurra.ng the auctioneer of the @officialEFCC has restored my bids back on there portal as a winner. Change is POSSIBLE.”
@sama_on_point expressed his displeasure saying: “The auction you conducted yesterday was a shame. In a bid to rig the system, the incompetent auctioneers you engaged allowed a bid of N350,000,000,000 for a Lexus RX 350 Jeep. It’s not a glitch. It’s a deliberate attempt to gate-keep others from bidding.”
Reacting to the complaints, the Commission in a statement released by its Head, Media & Publicity, Dele Oyewale on Thursday described the complaints that emanated from the process as “unfortunate”, noting that it could not intervene as it was delegated to accredited and licensed auctioneers.
The statement partly reads: “The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, notes with concern the reported unsavoury experiences of some Nigerians who participated in the just concluded public auction of forfeited vehicles conducted by accredited auctioneers on behalf of the Commission.
“Among the complaints received by the Commission were the inability of some citizens to access the websites of the auctioneers, being shut out from the platforms after submitting bids and outrageous bid prices, among others.
“Relevant Departments of the Commission monitored the exercise and can confirm that there were glitches. This observation was communicated to the auctioneers for remedial action. The Commission could, however, not directly intervene while the exercise was ongoing because the process had been assigned to duly accredited and licensed auctioneers in line with provisions of Sections 4(a)(b) of the Proceeds of Crime ( Recovery and Management) Act, 2022 and Section 55 of the Public Procurement Act, 2007.
“The complaints arising from the exercise are rather unfortunate and detracts from the plan of the Commission in settling for online auction which was designed to provide a platform for seamless and transparent participation by millions of Nigerians interested in purchasing the forfeited assets.”
Oyewale said that without making excuses for the auctioneers, it is possible that the sheer number of participants in the exercise (over 4 million) perhaps stretched the carrying capacity of the online facilities of the auctioneers.
He mentioned that the unstable internet service in parts of the country exacerbated the challenge.
“The Commission is currently awaiting the report of the auctioneers and assures that genuine complaints by members of the public will be reviewed to ensure that no one is short-changed in the exercise.
“Those who follow through the process without glitches and emerged winners will certainly be allocated their vehicles,” he vowed.
The spokesperson maintained that the Commission’s only interest in the public auction is to ensure that the assets are disposed in the most transparent manner and the nation gets value for the assets.
“This cannot be compromised under any circumstance,” he added.
