The real reasons for the sack of former Executive Secretary of Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria, FRCN, Mr. Jim Obazee, emerged yesterday, with Presidency sources disclosing that he was removed for procedural breaches.
A source, who did not want to be mentioned, revealed that the removal of Mr. Obazee based on advice of the Attorney General of the Federation had been approved by President Muhammadu Buhari before the decision of the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, RCCG, Pastor Enoch Adeboye, to step aside as head of RCCG in Nigeria.
It was learned in Abuja that contrary to the widely held opinion that Obazee was sacked because he forced Pastor Adeboye to resign, the resignation of the pastor and the removal of the Executive Secretary were mere co-incidence, as Obazee’s sack was to be announced at the same period, whether or not the pastor resigned.
The source said: “The sack of Obazee had nothing to do with the decision of the General Overseer of RCCG, Pastor Adeboye to resign, retire, step aside or whatever. It was just a co-incidence.
“Even if Adeboye had not stepped aside, the man (Obazee) was gone. It had absolutely nothing to do with the pastor. The key issue is that there is a procedure for doing things all over the world but he completely ignored it.”
The source explained that the code in question had not gone through the entire process before Obazee announced that it was law and must be complied with.
According to the source, it should have been approved by the board of the FRCN after due inputs from public hearings, passed to the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, who would then present it to the Federal Executive Council, FEC, and obtain the cabinet approval before the FRCN could issue it for compliance.
Even at that, the source said the code was not a law but best practice guidelines and that organisations were meant to comply or explain why they won’t comply.