- As former senator threatens lawsuit
The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) is presently enmeshed in a widening controversy over issues of due process, transparency, and alleged political interference on a major property transaction with a former lawmaker, Senator Farouk Bello Bunza.
The matter, which has heightened into a high-stakes dispute, may soon be headed to court, thereby exposing the corporation to some legal technicalities over lack of transparency.
However, the NDIC knowing the implications of its actions, has reportedly scheduled a meeting in Abuja this week as a move to buy time for negotiations and to avoid a situation in which Senator Bunza, who is already preparing to file a lawsuit to challenge the corporation’s refusal to release title documents to a premium ₦4.76 billion property in Banana Island which he insisted he has fully paid for.
The NDIC, which acted as liquidator for the defunct Heritage Bank, is claiming that the sale of the property to Senator Bunza is no longer valid due to alleged breaches of contract.
This position of the NDIC is what Senator Bunza has strongly disputed and accused the corporation of “banditry in high places” insisting that there is a ploy by some powerful interests to snatch the prime Lagos property.
In the words of Senator Bunza: “NDIC is acting like an ordinary con man”
Senator Bunza told journalists in Abuja over the weekend, that the “NDIC is acting like an ordinary con man”, stressing that he complied with every financial obligation required to complete the transaction on the disputed property located at Plot 55, Zone J, Federal Government Layout, Banana Island, Ikoyi, which is one of the most valuable residential enclaves in Nigeria.
Senator Bunza, who represented Kebbi Central senatorial district in the National Assembly between 2003 and 2007, insisted that he had paid for the property in three tranches, totalling ₦4.76 billion:
• ₦833,333,303
• ₦1,777,777,777
• ₦2,148,888,888.91 (paid on November 20, 2025)
Bunza noted that the NDIC had earlier agreed to release the title documents upon payment of the outstanding balance, a commitment his financiers at Coronation Merchant Bank relied on in processing his facility.
He however, expressed surprise that a day after the final payment, the NDIC wrote to the bank retracting its previous undertaking.
In the words of Bunza; “Coronation relied on NDIC’s earlier undertaking to make the payment. They cannot retract it now. How is NDIC now different from an ordinary con man on the streets?”
Bunza pointedly accused the NDIC of undermining investor confidence, saying; “If we were in a decent country, the Managing Director of NDIC and his underlings would have preferred resignation to issuing this retraction letter.”
He also dismissed insinuations of wrongdoing on his part, saying; “I did not steal from the government. I won’t allow myself to be defrauded by the system”.
On its part, the NDIC in a lengthy official statement, presented a sharply different version of events, saying that it has terminated the contract and would only offer a refund.
The NDIC said that the initial 2024 agreement between Senator Bunza and Heritage Bank was unfair to stakeholders, especially because:
• The property was mortgaged by a debtor owing the bank ₦35.79 billion.
• Though the debtor lost cases up to the Supreme Court, there remains a possibility the appeal could be refiled.
• NDIC’s valuation pegged the property’s worth at ₦7.005 billion, significantly higher than the original ₦4.5 billion sale price.
Consequently, NDIC said it re-offered the property to the senator at the revised valuation. Bunza rejected this.
A second valuation in 2025 — prompted by changes to waterfront land reclamation — brought the offer down to ₦4.76 billion, which aligns with the amount the senator eventually paid.
However, NDIC insists the revised offer included strict conditions, which the former senator allegedly failed to fulfil:
• Submission of a formal acceptance letter
• Signing a Deed of Undertaking authorizing NDIC to debit his accounts in case of default
• Acceptance of the property on an “as-is” basis, including complications around the title documents
• Strict installment timelines
NDIC Claimed:
• Bunza paid the September 2025 instalment of ₦1.777 billion
• But refused to accept or acknowledge the accompanying letter reminding him of unmet conditions
• His non-compliance “automatically terminated the offer,” NDIC stated.
The corporation further said; “The offer remains rescinded, and the sum of ₦2.611bn earlier deposited by Senator Bunza shall be refunded upon submission of account details.”
Title Documents: NDIC Blames EFCC, Senator Calls It a “Volte-Face”
One of the major elements of the dispute concerns where the property’s original title documents actually are as the NDIC has now said that the documents are not in its custody, contrary to earlier assurances, but now stated that the documents are allegedly with the EFCC or with an erstwhile director of the defunct bank.
This sudden reversal has drawn public ridicule, with commentators questioning how the NDIC could negotiate and re-offer a property without the documents in its possession.
However, sources familiar with the matter indicated that another influential senator and a serving minister from the South-West may be interested in the same property, thus may be pressuring the NDIC to invalidate Senator Bunza’s transaction with a view to get the property rerouted to them.
Bunza hinted at this when he said the system was being weaponised to dispossess him of the property.
A perusal at a set of transaction letters made available by Senator Bunza clearly showed timelines of payments, undertakings, and communications with the bank.
As the disagreement intensified with the NDIC assuring Coronation Bank that documents would be released, it however wrote a formal retraction to the bank, instructing it to disregard the earlier undertaking.
A representative of Bunza, who went to the NDIC headquarters to pick up the November 19, 2025 letter, reportedly declined to collect it after phoning the former lawmaker.
Legal Showdown Imminent
If this week’s scheduled meeting fails to pull through, Senator Bunza has given indication that he would be left with no option than to sue NDIC for:
• Breach of contract
• Failure to honour an undertaking
• Wrongful retraction of commitments
• Attempted deprivation of property
Already, the former lawmaker’s legal counsels are reportedly examining whether the corporation’s actions constitute administrative misconduct or malicious interference.
With the development, stakeholders in the financial sector have warned that the NDIC’s handling of the case could have broader implications for:
• Buyer confidence in distressed-asset sales
• The integrity of regulatory institutions
• The ongoing liquidation of Heritage Bank
The key questions that have remain unanswered are; “can NDIC legally rescind an agreement after accepting full payment?
“Why were undertakings issued when the title documents were allegedly not in NDIC’s possession?
“Will political interests ultimately dictate the outcome?”
Given the ongoing fireworks, unless both parties find a compromise, only the courtroom may determine who truly owns the property in dispute in Banana Island.
