‘Buhari, Osibanjo’s assets to be made public after…’

President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo will make their assets declaration public after same would have be verified by the Code of Conduct Bureau.

Senior Special Assistant to President Buhari on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu disclosed this in a statement Saturday evening.

There has been an outcry over Buhari’s decision to not make his asset declaration public as he promised during his campaign tour.

The Code of Conduct Bureau had claimed that it lacked the constitutional powers to Make Buhari’s assets declation public.

But in a statement in Abuja Saturday, Garba quoted Muhammadu Buhari as saying that ” in fulfillment of one of their campaign promises, his declared assets and those of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo will be released to the public upon the completion of their verification by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB).

“It is hoped that this process will be completed before the expiry of the 100-day deadline within which they said they would do this” he said.

Mal. Garba Shehu noted that “the duly completed forms by both the President and the Vice President were submitted to the CCB on March 28th, a clear day ahead of their inauguration.”

He said this statement was warranted by the need to clarify some suggestions that the President and the Vice-President may not, after all, declare their assets publicly.

“While such public display of concern is appreciated and valued, it must be said that it is a little precipitate.

“As required by law, the declaration and submission of documents to the CCB have been made, but there still remains the aspect of verification which the Bureau will have to conduct to authenticate the submissions made to it.

“In the circumstances, it is only after this verification exercise, and not before, that the declaration can be said to have been made and validated; and only after this, will the details be released to the public.

“There is no question at all that the President and the Vice President are committed to public declaration of their assets within the 100 days that they pledged during the presidential campaign.

“The President and the Vice President wish to thank Nigerians for their show of concern, and for the confidence they have shown in their leaders’ integrity, as evidenced by the high pedestal of uprightness and expectations on which they have placed them” the statement added