President Goodluck Jonathan has described the rating by RichestLifestyle.com, an online rating media that places him as the sixth richest African President, as baseless and libelous.
In a publication titled, “Africa’s Richest Presidents 2014,” the organization said Jonathan ranks sixth with an estimated net worth of $100 Million after other presidents including Jose Eduardo dos Santos, Angola president and first on the list with a net worth of $20 billion.
A statement issued by Reuben Abati, Jonathan’s spokesman, said the rating was “another attempt to unjustifiably portray the President as a corrupt leader and incite public disaffection against him.”
Abati further stated that, “There has been no significant variation in the totality of his personal assets as contained in his last declaration to the Nigerian Code of Conduct Bureau in 2011 which, as can be verified, was a very, very far cry from the $100 million figure now being bandied about by Richest Lifestyle.com and other irresponsible, copy-cat publications.”
Abati said such a claim that President Jonathan is now worth about $100 Million means that the President has corruptly enriched himself while in office “which is certainly not the case.”
“We therefore demand a retraction and an unreserved apology from Richest Lifestyle.com and all those who have reproduced the offensive article. Otherwise, they should be prepared to substantiate their libellous claims against the President in courts of law within and outside Nigeria,” Abati threatened.
