A Fiscal Policy Partner and Africa Tax Leader at PwC, Taiwo Oyedele, has advised members of the National Assembly to carry out investigations on the legitimacy of sources of wealth and assets declared by public office aspirants.
He also called for an amendment to the constitution to ensure the effectiveness of assets declaration in the fight against corruption.
Oyedele said such amendments should mandate the honest tax declaration and timely compliance as a prerequisite for holding public office.
According to him, the investigations and amendments to the constitution should also apply to governors, their deputies, ministers, special advisers, commissioners and judicial officers.
While noting that 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, Oyedele said the provisions are ineffective and needed to be amended.
Highlighting the amendments required, the tax analyst said, “For instance, declaring assets (and liabilities) without disclosing other obligations creates a loophole.
“A fraudulent person can set up a structure to acquire assets by assuming indirect liabilities and other obligations, declare the assets and then misappropriate public funds to settle the liabilities without showing any impact on the assets declared.
“There should also be a minimum threshold for a declaration to prevent a political witch-hunt and prosecution for not declaring a negligible asset say a phone or handbag.”
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“Don’t just focus on legal ownership but also control and beneficial ownership. A public officer can use a proxy or anyone under his/her control to own assets acquired with stolen public funds without being caught by the assets declaration rule.
Oyedele added, “Verify immediately after declaration and upon leaving office. The relevant agencies should be mandated and empowered to verify assets and liabilities declared and apply sanctions or prosecution for any violation in a timely manner. It is not enough to collect the information and file it away or use it only for political vengeance.
“Reconcile assets declaration with tax records. Relevant tax authorities should be required to check whether such assets have been disclosed for tax purposes where applicable and appropriate taxes have been paid at the right time on the income or gains used to acquire the assets.
“Confirm the legitimacy of assets and source of wealth. The question here is whether the assets declared were acquired legitimately or through fraudulent means even before assuming office. Merely declaring assets correctly is not enough, the sources of wealth must be explainable.
He stated that if the objective of fighting and preventing corruption is to be achieved, the above loopholes need to be addressed as part of the ongoing constitutional amendments to make assets declaration effective now and in the future.
