President Muhammadu Buhari’s personal wealth stagnated for the eight years he was in power, according to his post-presidency assets report.
Mr Buhari’s media aide Garba Shehu also said the former Nigerian leader recorded a decrease in the number of cows at his Daura ranch, which he recently said were easier to control than Nigerians.
Mr Shehu posted the acknowledgement receipt of Mr Buhari’s asset declaration as issued by the Code of Conduct Bureau on Twitter on evening Saturday. The document did not mean Mr Buhari publicly disclosed his assets after leaving office, only that he had disclosed them to the agency in charge of assets filings for public officeholders.
“Former President Muhammadu Buhari has submitted his assets declaration forms to the Code of Conduct Bureau, CCB, in line with Chapter 6 of the constitution,” Mr Shehu said. “The completed declaration shows that his movable assets did not increase, at home in Nigeria or outside and did not add new bank accounts outside the only one he had in Union Bank, Kaduna.”
Mr Shehu further said Mr Buhari did not take any loans and has no liability upon completion of his two terms of four years each on May 29.
“The number of animals in his farm recorded a little decrease due to the number he gave out as gifts in the last four years,” the aide further added.
The former president had played up his intention to retire to his farm to cater for his livestock, said to include mostly cattle and goats.
In his last days as president, Mr Buhari described his cows as easier to control than Nigerians, sparking reactions from Nigerians who berated the former president for comparing them to his cows.
“I am looking forward to tomorrow (Monday) to fly to my base and go back to my cows and sheep, which are much easier to control than fellow Nigerians,” Mr Buhari said.
The former president previously declared his assets upon assuming office in May 2015, and similarly did not publish the asset documents. Instead, he only asked Mr Shehu to release a statement claiming the assets the president had before becoming president, which included N30 million in cash and a house each in Abuja, Kaduna, Kano and his home town of Daura. He also said he had undeveloped lands in Port Harcourt and Kano, saying he was no longer sure of the location of the Port Harcourt land.
His disclosures raised suspicion from Nigerians, with the media and civic groups mounting pressure on him to publish his asset declaration documents to allow an independent corroboration of his claim. The suspicion was driven largely by Mr Buhari’s previous claim that he had no property in Abuja, saying during public appearances in years prior that he was renting accommodation whenever he had to be in the Nigerian capital.
Mr Buhari bucked the pressure to publish his asset report, leaving Nigerians in the dark as to his true state of wealth. Since his assets were not publicly disclosed when he assumed office, it would be difficult to establish whether or not they grew or stagnated as Mr Shehu claimed.
Even though he assumed office on a groundswell euphoria of austerity, Mr Buhari presided over a nation that regressed in corruption perception, according to Transparency International. Widespread looting among Mr Buhari’s political appointees and associates was reported, and his wife Aisha coordinated several influence-peddling rackets throughout her eight years as the First Lady.
