5 reasons why assets declaration is not fit for purpose

#1 - Declaring assets without disclosing liabilities is of little or no use. A fraudulent person can easily borrow, declare the asset and then misappropriate public funds to settle the liabilities without showing any impact on assets declared. Section 140 of the 1999 Constitution provides that a person elected to the office of President shall not begin to perform the functions of that office until he has declared his assets and liabilities. Other sections with similar provisions apply to ministers, special advisers, governors, commissioners and judicial officers.

#2 - Emphasis is on legal ownership rather than also control and economic benefit. One can easily use a proxy or anyone under his/her control to own assets acquired with stolen public funds without being caught by asset declaration.

#3 - Verification immediately after declaration and upon leaving office. The relevant agencies must verify assets and liabilities declared and apply sanctions or prosecution for any violation as specified in the law. It is not enough to just collect forms and file them.

#4 - Asset declaration and tax compliance. Does anyone check whether appropriate taxes have been paid and at the right time on the income or gains used to acquire the assets?

#5 - Legitimacy of assets. The question here is whether the assets declared were acquired legitimately or through fraudulent means even before assuming office.

If the objective of curbing corruption must be met, the above loopholes must be addressed otherwise the whole asset declaration thing is a waste of precious time. #wiseUpNaija