By Goddy Egene, 07.06.2010ÂÂÂ
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A leading shareholder activist and founding member of the Nigeria Shareholders Solidarity Association (NSSA), Alhaji Gbadebo Olatokunbo, has commended the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the enforcement of timely release of information by listed companies. This development, he said has empowered shareholders  to make better-informed investment decisions.
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Normally, listed companies are required to furnish regulators, SEC and the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) with quarterly, half-yearly, full year financial results and other information affecting their operations. But over the years, many companies have flouted the rule by not sending regular information to the market.However, SEC  recently intensified the implementation of the policies, which has seen significant improvement as companies send their results regularly to the market.
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Speaking  with THISDAY, Olatokunbo said that the apex regulator must be commended for this development as it has helped in making more information available for stakeholders. ‘The rules have been there over the years but they were hardly enforced. The new leadership at SEC has invigorated the system and companies are sitting up in the area of timely disclosure of information to the market. This has helped greatly because investors can now take decision based on such information,†he said. He said the apex regulatory body should not relent in its efforts to restore investor confidence, adding that instilling discipline in the market is one of the best ways to do that.
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The Director-General of SEC, Ms. Arunma Oteh recently said the commission would continue to strengthen disclosure and transparency among quoted companies.She said that integrity of any market could be partly measured by the level of information disclosure, transparency and quality of governance of institutions.The SEC boss said the mere provision of information to the public is not the key issue. ÂÂÂ
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She said: “What is absolutely important is the integrity, completeness and timeliness of information. The Commission is making reasonable strides in ensuring that public companies release periodic information on a timely basis. Our goal however, is to achieve full compliance by sanctioning non-compliance, which going forward, may include trading suspension.â€ÂÂ
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(Source:ThisDay)
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