President Jonathan, 29 Governors, Others Ordered To Declare Assets

President Goodluck Jonathan, his vice president, Namadi Sambo, 29 governors, 42 ministers, 109 senators and 360 House or Representatives have been directed by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) to declare their assets.
The officials were said to have been given a 30-day deadline to return the completed Assets Declaration Forms.

Kolade Omoyola, the CCB acting secretary, last Tuesday noted that “political office holders (had) to declare their assets on assumption and vacation of office in accordance with Paragraph II of the 5th Schedule of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended”.

The Bureau representative also issued a warning that those who fail to declare their assets, as required by the law, “shall attract on conviction any or all of the following: (a) Removal from office (b) Disqualification from holding any public office, (c) Forfeiture to the state any property acquired in abuse of office or dishonesty”.
It was gathered that only seven senators and 40 representatives had submitted their forms so far.

Meanwhile, President Jonathan last year refused to make such a move. He explained he had already done this while being deputy to Yar’Adua. He claimed in the course of the third presidential media chat:

“The issue of public assets declaration is a matter of personal principle. That is the way I see it, and I don’t give a damn about it, even if you criticise me from heaven. When I was the vice-president, that matter came up, and I told the former President (late Musa Yar’Adua) that let’s not start something that would make us play into the hands of people and create an anomalous situation in the country.

“The law is clear. A public officer should declare his assets, and if there are issues, then the relevant agencies would have a basis to assess whether you have amassed wealth or not. When it is said that people should declare their assets in public, it is not only the president or the vice-president; it includes everybody, including ministers.
“When I was a governor in Bayelsa State for about a year before becoming vice-president, I was investigated thoroughly. I have nothing to hide. But because I was under somebody and it was becoming an issue, because of the media, and because my boss had declared, it was said that the vice-president must. I declared, not because I wanted to.
“Initially, I said they can talk about it from morning to night, I will not. It is not proper. If one amends the law to say that only the president and the vice-president should declare assets publicly, fine. But, presently, everybody who is holding political office is expected to and I say it is not right.”