Tinubu Ends PIC Operations, Orders Secretary To Stand Down

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has formally ended the operations of the Presidential Implementation Committee (PIC) on the Alienation of Federal Government Properties, directing its secretary, Bello S. Dutsin-Ma, to immediately cease acting on behalf of both the committee and the federal government on matters relating to its activities.

The directive was contained in a State House statement issued on Thursday by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.

According to the statement, the President approved the immediate dissolution of the committee, bringing to an end the operations of the body established over two decades ago to oversee the privatisation, sale and lease of federal government landed assets under the monetisation policy.

The statement said all matters relating to the activities of the dissolved committee would henceforth be coordinated by the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi.

“Following the President’s directive, the PIC stands dissolved, and the erstwhile Secretary, B. S. Dutsin-Ma, is hereby further directed to cease acting on behalf of the committee and the Federal Government on related matters,” the statement said.

The Presidential Implementation Committee was established in 2000 during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo. It was chaired by the Minister of Housing and included representatives of the Ministries of Transportation, Justice, Health and Agriculture, as well as the Nigeria Police Force. Its pioneer secretary was Professor P. T. Ahire, then a Deputy Director in the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) had, on March 22, 2001, approved the establishment of a Panel of Inquiry to produce a White Paper to guide the implementation of its recommendations. The panel worked for 21 months before submitting its report.

However, the Presidency said the committee had outlived its usefulness, noting that its activities had extended beyond its original mandate and resulted in multiple litigations across the country.

It added that the continued existence of the committee was no longer justified.

Although President Tinubu directed that the Attorney General of the Federation should coordinate matters relating to the committee with effect from November 5, 2025, the statement announcing the dissolution was issued on July 30, 2026.