The Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders, CACOL, has asked the Senate President Bukola Saraki to declare publicly, his asset as the country’s number three citizen, to follow the foot steps of President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo.
The Chairman of CACOL, Debo Adeniran, said this was the only way transparency and true change could be achieved.
The Saraki-led Senate is currently probing the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Mr. Ibrahim Lamorde, while Saraki’s wife is being investigated by the EFCC for alleged financial impropriety.
However, Adeniran said the current anti-corruption drive of the All Progressives Congress-led government would not be complete unless those occupying public offices can prove that they have not illegally enriched themselves.
He said once Saraki declares his assets, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, as well as all principal officers of the National Assembly would also be motivated to do the same.
“Specifically, the principal officers of the National Assembly must declare their assets starting from the Senate President. All ministers and those who will work directly with the President such as the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the President’s Chief of Staff must also declare their assets publicly.
“That is how we will know that they have clean hands. Otherwise, they will become conduit pipes through which money will be siphoned from the public purse. Without such declaration, nobody knows how much they might have made after leaving office.”
Adeniran said the wives and children of public office holders must also be subjected to similar scrutiny because they are usually the beneficiaries of ill-gotten wealth.
“It is now the norm that anyone that wants to serve in any position of leadership of the present administration to publicly declare his or her assets because already, we have doubts about how much these individuals have made over the years.
“We want to know how much they are worth and have a benchmark with which we would measure what they would declare at the end of their tenure. Their spouses, children and siblings should also declare their assets since they enjoy whatever must have been received by the public officials,” Adeniran said.
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