The Court of Appeal has dismissed separate appeals seeking to compel the Code of Conduct Bureau to release the asset declaration forms of former presidents, vice presidents, and principal officers of the National Assembly.
Justice Okon Abang, who delivered the lead judgment, ruled that the lawsuits lacked maturity. He pointed out that when the lawsuits were filed at the trial court, the National Assembly had not issued any written instrument outlining the terms and conditions for the public to apply for the inspection of asset declaration forms or disclosure of information contained in those forms held by the respondent.
Abang stated that the appellants should have first gone to court to compel the National Assembly to establish the terms and conditions for the public to adhere to before approaching the Code of Conduct Bureau to disclose personal information regarding the asset declaration of former officeholders. He noted that the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act, relied on by the appellants, were not consistent with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution as amended.
Furthermore, he ordered each of the appellants to pay the sum of two hundred thousand naira as costs.
