AMCON: THE TERRIBLE TRUTH

 The Asset Management Corporation is focused on its mission, writes Jude Nwauzor

Hard as some recalcitrant obligors raise false alarms meant to incite the public against the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) by sponsoring frivolous articles to malign both the past and present leadership of the corporation, AMCON will remain resolute in its pursuit of debtors who owe the government and Nigeria’s taxpayers over N5trillion. It is therefore scandalous that some people would allow themselves to be used smear the image of a corporation that has made, and will continue to make huge recoveries for the federal government.

For the record, AMCON to date has made recoveries in the sum of N1.9trillion – of the total recovery; cash recovery represents 43%, sale of four bridged banks 13.3%, sales of proprietary shares 11%, claw back and repurchases 9.5%, asset sales and rentals 9.4%, investment income 7.2%, proprietary assets (unsold) 3.1% proprietary shares (unsold) 3.1% and divestment from portfolio 0.3%. No amount of smear campaigns of calumny can change these verifiable facts. It is also important to state that most of AMCON’s recovery activities are done transparently through the Courts, particularly when all peaceful resolution efforts have collapsed. AMCON currently has approximately 1,865 cases in the different Courts – the Federal High Court, the Appeal Courts, and the Supreme Court. These cases are against recalcitrant obligors who would rather spend money sponsoring ready-for-hire media platforms to attack AMCON than repay their debt.

Let it be stated categorically that in as much as AMCON will not join issues with any writer and sponsors of any scandalous article against the Corporation, the public should know that AMCON will not be deterred in its debt recovery mandate. The corporation has supported and will continue to support and resuscitate hitherto moribund companies, especially in the strategic sectors of the Nigerian economy.

Geometrics Power: AMCON restructured, and supported Geometrics Power Project along the path of optimal performance, which the country enjoys today. The Corporation is also playing a leading role in Rockson Engineering Limited known as the Kudenda Power Project in Kaduna State. On the indebtedness of the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company Plc (IBEDC), the Corporation has put the Company back on the path of profitability, and working with other strategic stakeholders will soon announce new investors to the public. This development would further improve electricity distribution in the country.

Pan Ocean Oil & Gas: AMCON also restructured Pan Ocean Oil Corporation (POOC), and its sister companies along the path of optimal operation. POOC is the first indigenous oil company to sign a Joint Venture (JV) agreement with the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

On Seawolf Limited, AMCON under the able leadership of the new executive management recently restructured Seawolf Limited to support the objective of increasing oil production in the country. This is majorly a resolution that is close to the heart of the government and aligns with the Renewed Hope Agenda of this administration.

In agriculture, AMCON in line with the Presidential Fertilizer Initiative has restructured and supported TAK Continental Limited in the reactivation of 11 fertilizer blending plants across the country. AMCON also aided and supported the resuscitation of Multitrex Integrated Food Processing Plc, a cocoa processing factory. AMCON’s restructuring of Dorman Long Industries Limited has seen a massive investment of over $17.5million by the Private Equity Fund (PEF). This has also boosted their capacity with its positive impact on the upstream oil and gas sector in Nigeria.

AMCON has successfully taken Ascot Fabricators, which was hitherto moribund on the path of production. Ascot Fabricators was once the largest in Africa and its coming back into operation with the support of AMCON would create employment in the Niger Delta thus helping to curb youth restiveness in the region. Again, under the leadership of the current executive management led by Mr Gbenga Alade, AMCON has been able to restructure NATCOM, and in collaboration with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) working to bring back the telecommunications player to full operations. NATCOM is the old NITEL (the then-national carrier). This move will improve the teledensity in the country and bring about increased revenue and other social gains to both the government and the Nigerian citizens.

AMCON has restructured and helped Golden Guinea Industries, Umuahia in Abia State. The factory has started production as a result of the AMCON intervention. AMCON also supported Aero Contractors business, and under the AMCON stead, the airline built the first Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in West Africa. AMCON has also ensured that Arik Air, a strategic carrier has remained in operations irrespective of the challenges. The Corporation has continued to support the activities of Peugeot Automobile (PAN) in Kaduna State to bring it back to optimal operations.

AMCON was established on July 19, 2010, when the President of Nigeria signed the AMCON Act into Law. The Corporation was created to be a key stabilising and re-vitalising tool to revive the financial system by efficiently resolving the Non-Performing Loan (NPL) assets of the banks in the Nigerian economy. AMCON is a sui generis statutory corporation with narrow and specialised statutory functions. The primary purpose for the establishment of AMCON is the procurement and management of Eligible Bank Assets (EBAs) and Eligible Equities (EEs).

At the heart of AMCON’s statutory mandate are the recovery of NPL and the enforcement and realisation of collateral. Therefore, AMCON is imbued with the powers under the AMCON Act, to, inter alia, realise any security that an EFI could have realised and in turn, enforce any rights or interest on any asset in relation to the EBAs acquired pursuant to the AMCON Act, which is what the Corporation has done effectively and efficiently since its establishment.

AMCON is a responsible agency of the Federal Government of Nigeria that carries out its operations within the ambit of the law and the AMCON Act. The mandate is to recover the over N5trillion owed Nigerians through several loans obtained from banks some of which have long collapsed. Unfortunately for the obligors, AMCON bought over these loans and would work within the law and the Act to recover the debts.

 Nwauzor is Head of Corporate Communications Department, AMCON