The Code of Conduct Bureau has said it cannot disclose the information in the asset declaration forms submitted by President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and other current and ex-public officials because the information is private and not for public consumption.
The bureau said the existing law guiding its operations did not allow for such disclosure and except the National Assembly amends the law, it had no power to make such information public.
The CCB stressed that though it had custody of the asset declaration forms of Presidents, Vice Presidents, Senate Presidents, Speakers of the House of Representatives, governors and deputy governors since return to democracy in 1999, such public officials had over the years refused to give consent to make the information in their asset declaration forms public.
The CCB said these in a counter-affidavit it filed in opposition to a suit seeking the disclosure of the content of the asset declaration forms submitted by Buhari and Osinbajo.
The suit marked FHC/L/CS/2019 and pending before the Federal High Court in Lagos was filed by an anti-corruption advocacy group, Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project.
A Senior Admin Officer with the CCB, Ellis Adebayo, who deposed to the counter-affidavit to SERAP’s suit, said she was informed by the bureau’s lawyer, Musa Ibrahim, that the law did not permit the CCB supply SERAP with the information in the Buhari and Osinbajo’s asset declaration forms.
