‘Gwarzo must stay’ campaigns must stop –Stakeholders

Chinwendu Obienyi

It is no longer news that former Director General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Mounir Gwarzo, was suspended from office after it was alleged that he paid himself severance package of N104.8 million and N10.4 million in excess of car grant while still in service.

Recently, trial judge in charge of the case, Hussein Baba-Yusuf,  granted him and co-accused Zakawanu Garba bail in the sum of N25 million each and a surety each in like sum and directed that the sureties must be civil servants in a Federal Government agency of not below the rank of Deputy Director.

He further directed them to deposit their travel documents to the court registrar as part of their bail conditions while adjourning the case for further hearing till June 29.
In the light of this development, there has been calls from different parts calling for his reinstatement as well as giving insipid reasons why the decisions to make him step aside should not hold.

According to a report from one of the national dailies, Nigeria’s Finance Minister, Kemi Adeosun issued a directive to the erstwhile suspended DG to stop the forensic audit of Oando Plc in which Gwarzo’s insistence on carrying out the audit led to his suspension.

It said, “Gwarzo deserves accolades for uncovering impairment losses of N838 million and N493 million on goodwill from acquisition of Churchhill, which were recognized in Oando’s accounts for the years 2013 and 2014 respectively as the impairment(decline in the value of an asset) write down carried out by the company from 2012 to 2016 amounted approximately N202.7 billion.” But then, the question that ordinarily pre-occupies the thoughts of those behind the sporadic media campaigns, which some analysts have tagged ‘sponsored copies in the guise of opinion articles’ is, did the suspended SEC boss really breach any extant law, public service rules or corporate governance principles while discharging his roles as the Director General of the commission? Is it true, as alleged, that the suspended SEC boss abused his office and violated the provisions of Sections 57 (12) (b) and 58 (5) of the Public Procurement Act, 2007 in the awards of contracts during his tenure?

Again, it is baffling that the fundamental issues relating to his suspension has not actually been touched but have rather chosen to engage in fractious and misguided arguments and by so doing, gathered under quirky canopy of self-delusion in their hope that emotions will sway support for their agenda.

The Federal Government’s Administrative Panel of Inquiry, last December, recommended Gwarzo’s dismissal, as Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), from the Public Service. This, it said is in line with “PSR 030402 (in relation to the allegation on Golden Handshake), having breached paragraphs 313 and 316(4) of the Financial Regulations (Government Notice No. 219 of 27th October, 2009)(engaging in extra budgetary expenditure without appropriate approval).”

Among others, Administrative Panel of Inquiry (API) set up by the Minister of Finance recommended that Gwarzo be referred to the ICPC for further investigation of the allegation of abusing his office to award contracts to Outbound Investments Limited, contrary to the provisions of Sections 57 (12) (b) and 58 (5) of the Public Procurement Act, 2007.

The report said to have been submitted to Mrs. Adeosun, directed, among others, that Gwarzo should refund the sum of N104,851,154.94, being the severance package he illegally approved for himself and received.

“Holding of the position of the director-general of SEC as well as a director in two private companies (Medusa Investment Limited and Outbound Investments Limited) was in breach of public service rule 030424, public service rule 030402 and Section 6 of the Investment and Securities Act, ISA 2007,” Upshot Reports quoted the report as saying.

The Panel advised the Federal Government to re-orientate public servants to the very fact that the Public Service Rules and Financial Regulations are ground norms of every Government Service Contract, be it at the Federal, State or Local Government levels.

It added, “Accordingly, all Government Extra-Ministerial Departments and Agencies should be made to understand that the PSR and FR are superior to whatever specific legislations and domestic arrangements that guide their operations, except when such issues were not covered by any provision of the PSR.”

Another point that ought to be addressed as regards attacks on the minister and lately the new management of the commission is, should the operations of the Commission be totally grounded just because a top official is being asked to account for some aspects of his conduct considered not in tandem with corporate governance rules?

It is also amusing to know that there are rumors swirling that the Finance Minister has hidden the audit report when the audit exercise is being undertaken by a globally renowed audit firm and it is wrong for the Minister to make public the report of an exercise that is yet to be concluded.

For now, it is also logical to say that rather than distracting the new management with frivolous insinuations and by desperately distorting the facts and deforming the issues, those at the forefront of the ‘reinstating gwarzo’ campaigns should allow the new team to concentrate on its assignments because the investing public would want to see current efforts of the government in improving corporate governance in SEC and  remedial suggestions to help the team achieve its mandate of being a world class market.

Thus, efforts should be channeled more in making the commission stronger, better managed and more responsive to capital market investors’ needs. Chief Executive Officer, Highcap securities, David Adnori, said, “You know the market is information driven, if it is positive, positive sentiments will follow, if not then, investors might remain uncertain of the market as regards what they are investing in and so it is required that this case should be solved quickly.”

This point was corroborated by the Chairman, House Committee on Capital Market and other Institutions, Hon. Yusuf Tajudeen, in  his opening remarks when the Finance Minister and Mallam Gwarzo appeared before the committee recently to state their cases, that the lingering risks if left unchecked may impact negatively on the capital market.