Ibukun Awosika speaks on sack as First Bank chair

ked First Bank chair, Ibukun Awosika, has insisted that the decision of the sack board of the First Bank Nigeria, Plc., to remove the reinstated Managing Firevtir_Chief Executive Officer (MD/CEO), Adesola Adeduntan, was taken in the best interest of the bank.

She spoke for the first time since last Thursday’s decision by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, to sack the board over which she sat as chair and to appoint a new board in its stead.

In a post on her Instagram page, entitled: “My FBN Group Journey,” Awosika said in October 2010, she was appointed to join the board of First bank of Nigeria.

She said few months later, she was appointed to chair the board of its start up FBN Life Insurance Limited (a joint venture with Sanlam of South Africa), adding that as its pioneer chairm, she had the privilege of working with a strong management team led by Val Ojumah.

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According to her: “Together with the rest of our team we built a company that became profitable in twenty four months and continues to be so.

“In early 2013, I was moved from FBN Life Insurance Ltd, to assume the chairmanship of FBN Capital working with a brilliant team led by Kayode Akinkugbe as the Managing Director.

“We worked hard to build the institution, bought Kakawa Discount House, which I was again asked by the Group to Chair. We eventually merged the companies to create the FBN quest Merchant Bank Group, which I chaired until my appointment as Chairman of First Bank of Nigeria on January 1st 2016.

“For over five years, I have worked with a dedicated team of board and management, with the support of Central Bank of Nigeria to rebuild and restructure the institution for its future. This included cleaning up non-performing loans, establishing good operational governance systems and processes, building controls and an effective and robust risk management system.

“I am confident we have brought First Bank of Nigeria to a place where it is more than able to deliver utmost value to its stakeholders and the nation at large.

“As a board, we acted in what we clearly believed to be in the best interest of the bank and we had great plans and aspirations for where the bank could go to in its future, building on all the work that has already been done in the last five plus years.

“Without a shadow of doubt, I will unequivocally state that I have always acted in honor and integrity with the utmost interest of the institution, all our stakeholders and the Nation.”