Published 31st Jul, 2023

By Tola Owoyele

On Sunday, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu appointed Jim Obazee, former Chief Executive Officer of the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRC), as a special investigator charged with probing the activities of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Obazee, who is to assume office with immediate effect, is expected to report his findings directly to the Office of the President.

Born on March 28, 1965, in Edo State, Obazee holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Benin, and a master’s degree in accounting from the University of Lagos. He also has a certification in strategic financial analysis for business evaluation from Harvard University, United States of America.

Before his latest appointment, Obazee served as FRC’s chief executive between 2010 and 2017.

Under Obazee in February 2014, the FRC recommended that Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, a former Governor of th Central Bank Nigeria (CBN), be sacked.

Before Sanusi’s sack however, the former CBN governor had alleged that billions of dollars accruable to the federation were being diverted by some persons in the management of the then Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan.

After Sanusi’s comments, Obazee’s FRC accused him of financial recklessness and recommended that he be asked to step aside, a recommendation that was upheld by Jonathan.

During his seven-year tenure, Obazee’s leadership was shrouded in controversies. Here are some of them:

ORDERED TO REFUND N94 MILLION INTO FEDERATION ACCOUNT

In March 2021, the Senate Committee on Public Accounts ordered Obazee to refund N94 million to the federation account.

According to the committee, N66 million was allegedly approved for a two-year rent on a property that the FRC never occupied while Obazee was its CEO.

Another N28 million was said to have been siphoned via 64 vouchers that had not been pre-audited. The panel accused Obazee of not carrying out due diligence in the application of public funds by ensuring value for money expended.

In its response, the FRC said the property needed a face-lift, including the partitioning of befitting office spaces out of it, but that never happened before Obazee was fired by the Buhari administration in 2017.

When the N28 million allegation was left undefended, the committee deemed it an infraction that was due to Obazee’s failure to strictly comply with the law and laid down procedures aimed at strengthening the internal control system in government agencies.

ACCUSED OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT

In 2013, Obazee was accused of sexual harassment by one Abimbola Patricia Yakubu, a federal official.

When Yakubu would not yield to Obazee’s advances, she was allegedly fired from her job in a retaliatory move.

Yakubu promptly sued the FRC for wrongful termination and coveing up sexual assault by its leadership, a lawsuit she won at the Kano Division of the National Industrial Court in 2016.

She was awarded N5 million against Obazee, and an order that she be reinstated with full payment of her salaries, including for the years she was away from work over the illegal termination, was also granted by the court.

THE LAW THAT FORCED ADEBOYE TO STEP DOWN AS GENERAL OVERSEER

In 2016, Obazee directed not-for-profit organisations, including churches and mosques, to comply with a corporate governance code stipulating a term of 20 years for heads of such entities.

It was because of this provision that Pastor Enoch Adeboye, who had spent over 20 years as the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), made Joshua Obayemi the head of the church in Nigeria.

Adeboye then appointed himself as the worldwide overseer of the church.

In January 2017, Muhammadu Buhari, the then president, fired Obazee and approved the reconstitution of the FRC board. The governance code issued by the FRC was also suspended pending a detailed review.

Following the development, Segun Adegbiji, the then head of media and public relations for RCCG, alleged that Obazee, who was once an RCCG member, had been on a vendetta mission against Adeboye.

“Obazee was a teacher at the School of Disciples, but he voluntarily resigned. Afterwards, he started attending RCCG Province II Parish on Acme Road, Ogba, Lagos. He was neither suspended nor sacked by the church,” said Adegbiji.

“There was no feud between him and the church that I know of, although I can confirm that I heard the story that he vowed to get Pastor Adeboye out.”

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