Why we will not make buhari's asset public -ccb

The Code of Conduct Bureau says it will not make
public the details of assets declared by President
Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi
Osinbajo due to limitations in federal laws
covering such release, the office has said.
The presidency said those details will be made
available after the Code of Conduct Bureau
authenticates claims in the declaration forms.
There has been controversy following the inability
of President Buhari and his Deputy Osinbajo to
release details of their assets since their
inauguration May 29, despite the promise to do
so.
OFFICIAL PORTRAITS OF BUHARI, OSINBAJO
Buhari pledged to publicly declare his assets
despite the lack of a law requiring him to do so
as the 1999 Constitution stated that office
holders declare their assets, without requiring
them to do so publicly.
A civil society group, Stop Impunity Nigeria, an
affiliate of the Centre for Social Justice, had on
June 1, 2015 applied to the CCB to request copies
of the completed assets declaration forms by the
President and his deputy.
The application, signed by the Lead Director of
the Centre, Eze Onyekpere, was pursuant to the
provisions of the Freedom of Information Act,
FOIA, 2011.
But, in its response CCB/HQ/670/G/1/104 dated
June 10, 2015 and signed by Ijeanuli Ofor on
behalf of the Chairman, the CCB declined the
request, citing the absence of prescribed law by
the National Assembly authorizing the release of
such information to the public.
The Bureau however, conceded the right by
Nigerians under section 1(1) 3 and 4 of the FOIA
2011, to “access or request information, whether
written or not in written form, in the custody of
any public agency”.
According to the Bureau, regardless of this,
‘’sections 12(1) (a) (v), 14(1) (b) and 15(1)9a) of
the same Act empowered it to decline any
request, which it considered an invasion of
personal privacy.
“Assets declarations by public officers contain
such personal information, which falls within the
exemptions to the disclosure of information in the
FOIA,” the Bureau added, explaining further that,
paragraph 3(c of the Third Schedule, Part 1 of the
constitution (as amended) empowered it to “make
assets declarations of public officers available for
inspection by any citizen of Nigeria only on terms
and conditions prescribed by the National
Assembly.
“However, the terms and conditions under which
that can be done have not yet been prescribed by
the National Assembly.”