Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike has said that he doesn’t have to publicly declare his assets because asset declaration doesn’t matter, what matters is the ‘sincerity of the person declaring.’
Wike who spoke through his media adviser on Media and Publicity, Opunabo Inko-Tariah noted that some people may over declare to include what they will steal before leaving office, while some people might under declare what they have already stolen.
Inko-Tariah said The governor has declared his assets and this is exactly what he told newsmen during the tour of his administration’s projects. There is no law compelling him to make his declaration public. He has declared his assets and the declaration was made to the relevant authority.
“Let me also say that it is not just about asset declaration; it has to do with the sincerity of the person because some may ‘over-declare’ when they want to steal in future. So, they declare to accommodate the theft in future.
“Some may also declare for whatever reason; maybe they have held public offices in the past and they don’t want people to know that they have stolen money. So, people will ‘under-declare’; it is not all about the declaration of assets.
“What is crucial is the sincerity of the person declaring and you are supposed to declare when you get out of office. But the truth is that if you are a governor or a minister, what matters is the delivery of the dividends of democracy. That is what is important and it is not about what you declare and how much you declare.”
He also warned the people of Rivers state to stop personalising governance because governance is a continuum.
He said “The governor (Wike) completed some of the projects Amaechi started, but the governor also initiated his own projects, completed and inaugurated them within 100 days.
“It is a little bit disturbing that people have started personalising governance. They should not personalise governance because it is a continuum. You do the best you can and leave for your successor to continue from where you stopped.
“The money spent on the projects belong to the state and by extension, Rivers people because they pay their taxes. There are some projects that cannot be done within four years and if such projects were not completed, you successor can continue from where you stopped.”