The House of Representatives Committee on Capital Market and Institutions has given the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) a two week deadline to complete its investigations on Oando Plc, and report its findings. The committee had last week summoned the Director-General of SEC Munir Gwarzo over petitions from aggrieved shareholders alleging mismanagement. The committee also stated that shareholders whose cases are not covered in the petitions currently being investigated by SEC, to forward theirs to the committee. Shareholders had recently protested after the recently held Annual General Meeting (AGM) where a vote of confidence was passed on Oando’s management.
The story so far
News had broken in July, that SEC was investigating two petitions levelled against the company, but Oando Plc refused to name the parties involved. After much pressure, the company named Alhaji Dahiru Mangal and Ansbury Investments (a company controlled by Gabriel Volpi) as the petitioners.
The two parties have alleged that the company has been mismanaged, and had requested SEC to suspend the AGM. Volpi and Mangal, also accused the company of not granting them adequate representation on the board despite their large shareholding. Volpi also accused Oando’s Group Managing Director (GMD) Wale Tinubu and Deputy Managing Director (DMD) Mofe Boyo of failing to pay back a loan he had lent them to acquire shares. The company, in its reply denied the allegations and accused the petitioners of having ulterior motives to take over the company.
SEC, in its response said the investigations did not warrant the AGM’s suspension, and it eventually held. The regulator also maintained that it had shareholders interest uppermost in its agenda, and that investigations were on going. Oando shares closed at N5.99 in yesterday’s trading session on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) up 27.45% year to date.
