In 2015, Muhammadu Buhari publicly declared that he held $150,000 (£100,000) in his personal bank account, marking a symbolic start to his presidency’s anti-corruption stance.

The BBC’s Will Ross noted the sum amounted to “chicken change” for Nigeria’s political elite, but would be considered a substantial fortune by most citizens in Africa’s largest economy.

Buhari, a former military ruler and ex-minister of petroleum, made history as the first opposition candidate to win Nigeria’s national election.

His victory in March 2015 was widely credited to his pledge to tackle the twin challenges of corruption and insecurity. At the time, Buhari stated that an estimated $150bn (£100bn) had gone missing from the nation’s coffers, highlighting the scale of alleged financial mismanagement.

The President’s asset declaration from 2015 included five homes and two mud houses located in Kaduna, Daura, Kano and Abuja. He also listed farms, an orchard and a ranch with 270 cows, along with 25 sheep, five horses, and various birds.

Additional holdings comprised two undeveloped plots of land, shares in Berger Paints, Union Bank, and Skye Bank, and a Union Bank account with N30m. Buhari claimed to have purchased two cars from his savings, while other vehicles had been gifted or supplied by the federal government, including after a Boko Haram attack damaged his jeep in 2014.

Ahead of his second inauguration in 2019, President Buhari submitted his asset declaration forms to the Code of Conduct Bureau, fulfilling a constitutional requirement.

The Presidency, through Garba Shehu, announced that the completed forms were delivered by Senior Special Assistant Sarki Abba, and had been signed and sworn to before a judge of the Abuja High Court.

Buhari reportedly made no additions to his portfolio compared to 2015. “There are no new houses, no new bank accounts at home and abroad and there are no new shares acquired,” the Presidency stated.

The Code of Conduct Bureau’s chairman, Professor Mohammed Isa, commended Buhari for setting a good example by abiding by asset declaration laws.

Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo was revealed to be considerably wealthier than the president. According to Shehu, Osinbajo held $1.4m (£900,000) across bank accounts. His declaration also included multiple properties: a four-bedroom home, a three-bedroom flat, a two-bedroom flat, and a mortgaged two-bedroom residence in Bedford, UK.

The former Lagos State commissioner of justice had a distinguished career before assuming national office.

The Presidency confirmed that both leaders complied with legal mandates to declare assets before leaving office. While full documentation was submitted to the Code of Conduct Bureau, the Presidency stated that public access would follow post-verification.

Late President Umaru Yar’Adua remains the pioneer of this transparency tradition, having declared a net worth of $5m (£3.5m) in 2007.

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Source: Legit.ng