Article summary
- The Code of Conduct Bureau has said that all elected and re-elected public officers that are due for swearing in on May 29, must declare their assets before being sworn in.
- The Bureau said it had already issued the asset declaration to all of them but some are yet to submit as of Tuesday, May 23.
- It said those who are sworn in without declaring their assets will face consequences.
The Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) has said that all newly elected officers, including the President-elect, Bola Tinubu, his Vice, Kashim Shettima, and state governors, either newly elected or re-elected must declare their assets before they are sworn in on May 29 or they will face the consequences for not doing so.
Dr. Mustapha Musa, the Special Assistant to CCB Chairman, Prof. Mohammed Isah, stated this in a chat with the media on Tuesday. According to him, the Bureau has done its part by issuing the asset declaration forms to all newly elected and re-elected public officers across the country.
He, however, noted that some of the forms issued have not been returned. According to Musa, the constitution is clear on the consequences for those that fail to return the form before they are sworn in.
Constitutional mandate
Emphasizing the importance of the asset declaration for all elected and appointed public officers, Musa said:
- “It is important for elected officers to comply with the provisions of the Constitution as it is part of the requirements for occupying or exiting a public office. As an agency of government, we have already done our work according to the constitutional mandate; we have issued assets declaration forms to the newly elected and returning public officers.
- “But since asset declaration administration is a continuous process, we have started receiving some completed forms from some of them, while some are yet to return theirs. Though, from previous experience, we hardly have had any problem with elected public officers, they do fill and return their forms, but it is important we remind them of the need to comply with the provisions of the law.”
- “The constitution is clear on defaulters; hence they should declare before they are sworn in or they face the consequences.’’
Musa said that aside from elected public officers, appointed public officers and civil servants should also endeavour to declare their assets. He added that apart from asset declaration, the officers must comply with all the codes of the Bureau.
- “We always urge them to comply with the code of conduct as enshrined under the fifth schedule of the constitution of the country, not only asset declaration. They should comply with other codes, like the prohibition of bribery and corruption, abuse of power, among others because it is for the betterment of our country,
- “When things get better, corruption will be defeated and we will have a country we will be proud of,” he said.
