Nigeria: Declare Your Assets, Serap Tells Tinubu, Atiku, Obi, Other Presidential Candidates

What the report says

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged Nigeria’s 19 presidential candidates named by the Independent National Electoral Commission to publicly declare their assets and liabilities ahead of the 2027 election. In an open letter dated August 8, 2026, and signed by SERAP Deputy Director Kolawole Oluwadare, the group also asked the candidates to reject vote-buying and to disclose the assets and liabilities of their spouses and, where relevant, unmarried children under 18, along with legitimate sources of significant wealth.

According to the report published by This Day and distributed by AllAfrica, SERAP said the candidates should go beyond minimum legal requirements and adopt higher standards of transparency, accountability and integrity. The organization argued that people seeking the presidency should be willing to place their personal finances under public scrutiny before asking for votes, given the authority the office carries over public funds, natural resources, appointments and security institutions.

Among those named were President Bola Tinubu, former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, Senator Sandy Onor, Omoyele Sowore and former Cross River State Governor Donald Duke, along with other candidates from smaller parties. SERAP said voluntary pre-election disclosure would help voters assess possible conflicts of interest and provide a baseline for monitoring future changes in wealth if any candidate wins office. The appeal comes as parties begin positioning for the next national election cycle, underscoring continuing debate in Nigeria over political accountability and campaign ethics.