Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun has added a twist to the Oando saga. In a series of tweets from the Ministry of Finance’s twitter handle, Kemi Adeosun accused the suspended Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Munir Gwarzo of attempting to blackmail her.
“Mr. Gwarzo personally delivered the memo using SEC staff seconded to the office of the Minister, in breach of normal procedures for the receipt of mail. The copy of the memo in the possession of the Minister was delivered with a message that any action against Mr. Gwarzo would result in same being leaked to the press.
Unanswered questions
Why did it take so long for the Minister to reveal this ? The revelations by the Minister have done very little to assuage some sentiments held that the DG was suspended to prevent a forensic audit from being carried out. Kemi Adeosun is also yet to explain why she requested that Oando and several of its staff be fined? Had there been friction between the personalities involved prior to this event ?
Did the Minister breach the due process stated in the Investment and Securities Act 2007, by suspending Gwarzo ? According to the ACt;s provisions, a full time board member can only be removed from the board, if the Senate grants approval.
Not the first storm in a tea cup
The spat between Adeosun and Gwarzo, will not be the first witnessed in this administration. Minister of State for Petroleum Ibe Kachikwu, in a memo to President Buhari which leaked, accused the Group Managing Director (GMD) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) of insurbodination and awarding contracts without due process. Kachikwu later recanted his words, after a rebuttal from the NNPC and the matter went cold.
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