Two months after assuming office, President Muhammadu
Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo have yet to present themselves to the
Code of Conduct Bureau for verification of their assets as required by law.
This is despite the fact that they had promised to
make the details of their assets declared to the CBB public only after the
verification exercise.
But two months after the private declaration of their
assets, SUNDAY PUNCH has learnt that the first and second citizens had yet to
present themselves for the verification.
Section 3(a) of the Third Schedule of the nation’s
1999 Constitution, which is reproduced in section 3(b) of the Code of Conduct
Bureau and Tribunal Act confers the power to verify the assets declared by the
public officers on the CCB.
The Presidency had said until the CCB completed the
verification, the President and the Vice-President would not make the details
of their declared assets public as they promised during electioneering.
The Chairman of the CCB, Mr. Sam Saba, confirmed to
our correspondent in an exclusive interview on Thursday that both President
Buhari and Vice President Osinbajo had yet to show up for the verification.
According to him, the verification of the assets
declared by a public officer involves two stages, which are conference and
field verifications.
Under the conference verification, the public officer
is expected to present documents such as statements of bank accounts, receipts
and evidence of vehicle registration relating to the declared assets before a
committee inaugurated by the bureau.
After the conference verification, the officers of the
bureau and the public officer will agree on a convenient date when the CCB’s
committee will visit the locations of the assets for physical inspection.
Saba stated that none of the two stages of
verification had commenced with respect to the assets of the President and the
Vice President.
Upon further inquiries, the CCB boss said the
verification would commence “any moment from now”, adding that “we are waiting
for when it is convenient for Mr. President and his Vice for us to go and do
it.”
The CCB boss, who said the verification of assets of
governors and deputy governors who were inaugurated on May 29, 2015, was
ongoing, also disclosed the bureau was collaborating with the Nigerian
Financial Intelligence Unit to aid the verification of the financial standings
of public officers.
He said, “There is cooperation between us and other
anti-corruption agencies. We have even signed memorandum of understanding.
“For example, if the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission has a case that involves any public officer, they (EFCC) request for
the forms (completed assets declaration form) from us and we give them, the
same thing with the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences
Commission, including the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit and when we need
help we also ask them.
“I have just said that we should draft a letter to the
NFIU requesting for the financial profile of the outgone governors and the
incumbent ones so that we can make comparison in our verification exercise.”
Saba also stated that any public officer found to have
made false declaration of assets after the ongoing verification exercise would
be prosecuted before the Code of Conduct Tribunal.
“Definitely it will go to the tribunal, because it
will be a breach,” he said.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media
and Publicity, Garba Shehu, however told our correspondent on Saturday that
President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo are not required to
appear before the Code of Conduct Bureau for the verification of their assets.
Shehu said verification of assets is based on
intelligence and is expected to be done discreetly by the bureau.
He said it is only when the bureau finishes the
verification and discovers any discrepancy that it can revert to the President
and Vice President.
The presidential aide urged Nigerians to be fair to
the two officials, who, he said had declared their assets on their own and also
promised to make the declarations public within their 100 days in office.
He said, “Nigerians should be fair to the President
and the Vice President. There is no requirement for them to appear for
verification.
“It is an intelligence exercise that should be done
discreetly.
“They have declared their assets and have also
promised to make it public within their 100 days in office.
“People should not sensationalise this issue
unnecessarily.”
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