Two Oando Directors Resign

Obinna Chima

Following the action of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Oando Plc has notified the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), its shareholders, stakeholders and members of the public of the resignation of its non-executive directors – Chief Sena Anthony and Mr. Oghogho Akpata, from its board.
The resignation, according to a statement obtained on the NSE website, became effective from June 3, 2019.  editorthisday

SEC had last Friday announced the removal of the company’s Group Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Wale Tinubu, and his deputy, Mr. Omamofe Boyo.
“Chief Sena Anthony and Mr. Oghogho Akpata were active members of the board and its sub-committees. The board and management of Oando Plc appreciates their valuable contributions to the growth of the company,” the oil and gas company added in the three paragraph statement.

Anthony was appointed as a non-executive director of the company in January 2010. Prior to her appointment, Anthony worked with the Federal Ministry of Justice before joining the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) in 1978. She was appointed Group General Manager, Corporate Secretariat and Legal Division, as well as the Secretary to the NNPC in July 1999 and was promoted to the level of Group Executive Director on 6 May 2007. Chief Anthony was the first female to be appointed to such a position in the NNPC. She retired in January 2009 as the Coordinator (Group Executive Director Level) Corporate Secretariat and Legal Division as well as the Secretary to the Corporation and Board of the NNPC after working for the NNPC for 31 continuous years.

Anthony was also a director of Napoil Limited a crude oil and petroleum products trading company owned by NNPC, a director of Brass LNG Company and General Manager Legal and secretary to the board of Nigeria LNG Limited. Chief Anthony obtained a Bachelors degree in Law from the University of Lagos in 1973 and was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1974.

Also, Akpata is the Managing Partner and Head of the Energy and Projects Group at Templars Barristers & Solicitors. He possesses 20 years of experience in the transactional and dispute resolution aspects of the Nigerian oil and gas sector and advises a broad range of clients including international oil companies, oil service contractors and a number of multinationals operating in Nigeria. Akpata has been listed among the leading energy and natural resources lawyers in Nigeria by Chambers Global guide to the legal profession from 2005 to date. He is also listed a leading energy practitioner in the “Legal 500” and Who’s Who Legal as a leading Project Finance and Oil & Gas lawyer. He is also a member of the Association of International Petroleum Negotiators (AIPN); Chartered Institute of Taxation, Nigeria as well as the Section on Energy and Natural Resources Section of the International Bar Association.

SEC, in the aftermath of the sacking of Tinubu and Boyo had constituted an interim management headed by Mr. Mutiu Sunmonu, to oversee the affairs of Oando Plc and conduct an Extra Ordinary General Meeting on or before July 1, 2019.
The regulatory commission not only barred Tinubu and Boyo from holding director positions of public companies for a minimum of five years, it also ordered other directors of the company to resign their positions immediately.

But following an ex-parte motion filed by Tinubu and Boyo, through their lawyer, Mr. Tayo Oyetibo (SAN), Justice Mojisola Olatoregun of the Federal High Court in Lagos had ordered SEC and Sunmonu to maintain the status quo. The judge had said the order to maintain the status quo would remain pending the determination of the motion on notice. She had ordered that the order be served on the commission alone with the motion on notice, as well as other processes.