The Action Congress on Monday condemned the decision of the Vice- President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, not to publicly declare his assets.
The party, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said the statement of the Vice-President was �careless and out of tune.�
The AC advised Jonathan to emulate his boss, President Umaru Yar�Adua, by making his assets public.
The VP had been quoted on Sunday as saying that no law in the country compelled him or any other political office-holder to publicly declare his or her assets.
He had said, �I have gone through relevant laws and did not come across it anywhere that I should declare my assets publicly. It is not mandatory. That means it is a matter of choice but I don�t see any big deal about it.�
Jonathan added that he had declared his assets five times between 1999 and 2007 and challenged anyone keen on scrutinising them to visit the relevant authorities.
But in its statement, which was made available to our correspondent on Monday, the AC argued that it was not an issue of law or legality but that of morality and transparency for the VP to toe the path of honour and make his asset declaration public.
The statement reads, �What the VP has done by refusing to toe this path is akin to thumbing his nose at his boss, who has made his own asset declaration public even when the law does not mandate him to do so.
�Jonathan is simply saying he does not believe in whatever reasons that might have compelled his boss to make his assets public, that he is not ready to work with the President and that for him (VP), it is business as usual.
�This confirms what we and many others have been saying since this administration was swept into office in a gale of massive rigging and other election frauds, that nothing straight can be fashioned out of the crooked timber of the PDP.�
The party said irrespective of the fact that the VP had declared his assets five times, the current reality was that he was the nation�s number two man.
It said, �Declaring assets five times means nothing as long as no one knows what the VP had declared. For example, it will be very interesting to know how the VP�s asset declaration has changed between the time he served as the deputy governor and the governor of the oil-rich state of Bayelsa.�
The party, however, said it was delighted that the VP offered to resign if he was found guilty of any misdeed while serving as a governor.
It also expressed the hope that the VP would stand by his promise if there was any untoward revelation about his tenure as a governor.
The AC also expressed shock at the claim by Jonathan that former President Olusegun Obasanjo did not say how much he left for the Yar�Adua administration as assets and liabilities.
The party wondered how an administration that supposedly made transparency and anti-corruption major planks of its tenure could be so unaccountable.
�The lies and deceit of the Obasanjo years will come to the open in the fullness of time, whether or not the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and other agencies are willing to investigate the administration,� it added.