A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has ordered the permanent forfeiture of a multi-billion-naira housing estate earlier approved in honour of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
The ruling effectively transfers ownership and control of the stalled project to the Federal Government, bringing to an end years of controversy, inactivity, and allegations of financial misconduct surrounding the estate.
The judgment, delivered on December 11 by Justice Mohammed Umar, followed a motion filed by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC). 
The anti-corruption agency had approached the court seeking a final forfeiture of the disputed land, arguing that it constituted proceeds of unlawful activity and that urgent action was required to safeguard public interest.
The property in question is the Goodluck Jonathan Legacy Model Housing Estate, a large-scale housing project located in the Kaba District of Abuja.
The estate was initially conceived as part of the National Housing Fund (NHF) Scheme and was designed to deliver 962 affordable housing units for low-income Nigerians. More than a decade after its approval, however, not a single housing unit has been built on the expansive site, despite the release of substantial public funds. Justice Umar, in his ruling, ordered that the land be finally forfeited to the Federal Government. He further directed that the ICPC should supervise the completion of the housing estate on behalf of the government, working jointly with the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN). According to the court, this arrangement is necessary to ensure transparency, accountability, and adherence to the original purpose of the project.
“The essence of this forfeiture is to protect public interest and recover value from a project that has consumed huge public funds without delivering commensurate benefits,” the judge said. The Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, which was listed as the sole respondent in the case, did not oppose the ICPC’s application. The court recognised FMBN as the victim of the alleged illegal transactions tied to the project and ordered that the forfeited properties be formally handed over to the bank for onward management in line with government directives.
The forfeited assets include two major plots of land in the Kaba District. One plot measures approximately 122,000 square metres and was valued at nearly ₦2 billion, while the second spans about 157,000 square metres with an estimated value of over ₦3.3 billion. Justice Umar held that both plots were reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activity, given the circumstances under which they were allocated and the manner in which public funds were expended.
As part of the ruling, the court also ordered the ICPC and FMBN to jointly establish a committee that will oversee the completion of the housing estate. The committee is expected to ensure that the project is executed in line with its original design and that, once completed, the housing units are allocated strictly to Nigerians who genuinely need affordable housing. Justice Umar stressed that the proposed 962 housing units must not be diverted from their original purpose. He warned that any attempt to misuse or misallocate the estate in_toggle would defeat the very objective of the forfeiture and undermine public confidence in government housing initiatives.
The ruling represents the culmination of a legal process that began earlier in the year. In July, the court had granted an interim forfeiture of the same plots after the ICPC filed an ex parte application. At the time, Justice Umar ordered that the land be secured pending the final determination of the case, citing the risk that the property could be sold off or otherwise disposed of before the court reached a conclusion. Investigations by the ICPC revealed troubling details about the origin and execution of the project.
Court documents showed that the land was allocated free of charge by the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) specifically for the construction of the housing estate under the National Housing Fund Scheme. The project received official approval in 2012 and was named after then-President Goodluck Jonathan as a legacy initiative aimed at expanding access to affordable housing. According to the ICPC, the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria engaged Good Earth Power Nigeria Limited as the private developer responsible for executing the project. To finance the development, FMBN reportedly secured a loan facility of 65 million dollars, which was fully disbursed to the developer. However, investigations revealed that despite the release of the entire loan amount, no construction activity took place on the site. There was no evidence of groundwork, foundation laying, or any other form of development consistent with a project of such magnitude.
