The House of Representatives on Wednesday called for urgent executive action to dismantle the financial networks sustaining kidnapping, banditry and terrorism, urging the Federal Government to strengthen financial intelligence coordination and tighten oversight of Bureau De Change operators, Point-of-Sale operators and other financial intermediaries.
The resolution followed the adoption of a motion titled, “Need for Executive Action to Halt the Ransom Cash Economy, Strengthen Financial Intelligence Coordination, and Enforce Compliance with Anti-Money Laundering Frameworks in Nigeria,” sponsored by Lagos lawmaker, Ademorin Kuye.
Moving the motion, Kuye said the Federal Government has a constitutional responsibility to protect lives and safeguard Nigeria’s economic sovereignty, noting that existing laws already empower relevant institutions to detect and disrupt illicit financial flows
He cited provisions of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022 and the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, which require financial institutions, designated non-financial businesses and government agencies “to identify, report and prevent transactions linked to money laundering, terrorism financing and ransom payments.”
