Group drags Conduct Bureau to court over Jonathan’s Asset

Posted by admin Goodluck Jonathan (2010-present), Presidency Thursday, October 27th, 2011

The African Centre for Media and Information Literacy (AFRICMIL) has dragged
the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) to court over the asset declaration of
President Goodluck Jonathan.

In a suit (No FHC/ABJ/CS/877/2011) filed at the Federal High Court, Abuja, on
behalf of AFRICMIL by Ashimole Felix of Che Oyintumba Associates,
AFRICMIL is seeking an order of mandamus compelling the CCB to comply
with its request of making available to the public the asset declaration of
President Goodluck Jonathan.

On July 28, 2011, AFRICMIL sent a Freedom of Information request to the
CCB, asking “to be allowed to inspect and obtain copies of the 2007 asset
declaration of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan; the asset declaration of
President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan after the end of his tenure on May 28,
2011 and the current asset declaration of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan
when he assumed office on May 29, 2011.”

Mr. Lewis Asubiojo, Director of Programmes AFRICMIL said the organization
was concerned that even with the memo from the Presidency, that government
agencies should subject themselves to the Freedom of Information Act, the
CCB refused to act on its request.

Mr. Asubiojo noted that for a government that has proclaimed a transformation
agenda and wants to fight corruption, it is important that President Jonathan
leads by example, and one way he can do that is to make public his asset
declaration.

Paragraph 3, Part I of the Third Schedule to the 1999 Constitution of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended, provides that the Code of Conduct
Bureau shall have power to: (a) receive declarations by public officers made
under paragraph 12 of Part I of the Fifth Schedule to this Constitution; (b)
examine the declarations in accordance with the requirements of the Code of
Conduct or any law; (c) retain custody of such declarations and make them
available for inspection by any citizen of Nigeria on such terms and conditions
as the National Assembly may prescribe.

Paragraph 11 of Part I of the Fifth Schedule to the Constitution provides that:
(1) Subject to the provisions of this Constitution, every public officer shall within
three months after the coming into force of this Code of Conduct or
immediately after taking office and thereafter — (a) at the end of every four
years; and (b) at the end of his term of office, submit to the Code of Conduct
Bureau a written declaration of all his properties, assets, and liabilities and
those of his unmarried children under the age of 18 years.

Pursuant to the aforementioned constitutional provisions and section 2 of the
Freedom of Information Act 2011, which states that “Notwithstanding anything
contained in any other Act, Law or Regulation, the right of any person to
access or request information, whether or not contained in any written form,
which is in the custody or possession of any public official, agency or
institution howsoever described, is hereby established”, AFRICMIL made the
request to the CCB to be allowed to inspect and obtain copies of President
Goodluck Jonathan’s asset declaration.

-African Examinerwp_posts