By Peter OBIORA InvestAdvocate

Lagos (INVESTADVOCATE)-Shareholders in the Nigerian Capital Market (NCM) has faulted the reinstatement of Arunma Oteh, embattled Director General (DG) of Nigeria’s Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) by the Federal Government.

Sir Sunny Nwosu, the National Coordinator of the Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria (ISAN) Thursday disclosed to www.investadvocateng.com that it was great disappointment what the Government has done by reinstating Oteh.

”That’s a very great disappointment on the side of Government; because I feel strongly that they failed to feel the Pulse of the Market and that of Investors before taking such decision,” Nwosu said.

According to him, there was a very clear signal that the Government failed to understand in Oteh’s absence, the Market started appreciating which never came up when she was there.

”Apart from this, I believe that if you are serving and suddenly you were asked to stop and people are rejoicing, there must be something wrong with such a person. We actually need stability in the Market,” he affirmed.

Nwosu further affirmed that the Government never put into consideration the Foreign investors whom may not welcome the policy summersault of recalling Oteh by the Government.

He further affirmed that the Report of the House of Representative Ad-Hoc Committee on the Capital Market just came out; which further indicated she was not qualified for the position which she has held at SEC.

”Again, we preach rule of law in this Country, and we must strive to follow the law as laid down. The law says about 15 years experience in the Capital Market was required for a person to be in that position; because of the importance of that office and all these were not met by Oteh” the Shareholder Leader said.

Nwosu said for the Government affirming that they discovered some Administrative lapses means they are economical with the truth. ”The Government was economical with the truth; they didn’t want to expose the lapses which they found; because that will trigger another problem,” he said.

”I am asking the Government, to make public the findings of the Auditors commissioned to look into the allegations and make same public to investors and other stakeholders to really understand the basis at which they took the decision of reinstating her,” Nwosu said

He advised Oteh to use the opportunity of her reinstatement to resign her appointment as DG of SEC; since she is not popular in the Nigerian Capital Market.

”My Advice to Oteh is that she has not been popular in the Capital Market. You cannot control the Capital Market when you think you are above everybody. Therefore, it is a window of opportunity for her to actually resign. For us the shareholders, definitely we will not support her administration. I have told her that SEC in her regime does not have integrity and if the SEC does not have integrity, it means that everybody in SEC does not have integrity,” he said.

On his part, Boniface Okezie, National Chairman, Progressive Shareholders Association of Nigeria (PSAN) said the Federal Government should have awaited the House of Representative to deliberate on the outcome of the Report submitted by the Ad-Hoc Committee on the Capital Market before taking the decision of recalling Oteh.

”The Federal Government should have awaited the outcome of that Report instead of pre-empting them by taking this decision to reinstate Oteh. The National Assembly is an Arm of Government and I believe the three Arms of Government should work in tandem in fighting corruption. The Executive Arm should have consulted them on their findings before taking the decision to recall Oteh,” Okezie said.

He said the Government has not taken time to study the Report of PricewaterhouseCoopers before taking this decision.

”Nigerians are interested in knowing the outcome of that Report and now Government has gone ahead to take a decision. Government should have made the Report,” he said.

According to him, for the fact that Government said she was founding wanting in Administrative lapses; means she is not qualified to be in that position. ”This is enough reason for the Government to send her away; because she does not posses the managerial ability and capacity to be the head of SEC,”Okezie said.

He called on Oteh to seize the opportunity of her reinstatement to resign as DG of the Commission. ”If she has honour, she should resign using this opportunity to save her face,” he said.

This is coming on the heels of the recall of Oteh Wednesday as the DG of Nigeria’s SEC from Compulsory Leave.

She is to resume at her duty post to continue the world class reforms targeted at eradicating the culture of graft, corruption and mediocrity which is prevalent in the SEC as well as the lack of Market integrity and rule enforcement which have eroded investor confidence in the capital markets.

Oteh’s recall is sequel to an audit report which absolved her of fraud or criminal motive in the “Project 50” engagement that involved soliciting for funds from institutions and concerns under her regulatory oversight which were not remitted to the accounts of the regulator.

With her recall, the supervising authority of the SEC, the Hon. Minister of Finance, Mrs Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala as well as the ratifying authority i.e. the Presidency has discountenanced the allegations of wrongdoing around Project 50 as not meeting the threshold of a breach in ethics and due process. In effect, the GON has overruled the Board as constituted under the ISA.