Capital Oil Plc. Managing Director/CEO, Jerome Ikhine is in big trouble as a sub-committee of the House of Representatives on Capital Market and Institutions on Thursday, October 25, 2018 asked the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to take over the company for allegedly defrauding shareholders of more than N5 billion.
Jerome Ikhine, MD/CEO, Capital Oil Plc.
The committee is chaired by Honourable Tony Nwulu from Lagos State and it is investigating the level of compliance with operational and regulatory requirements by publicly-quoted companies in the country.
The lawmaker said; “The panel has information detailing on how successive management teams of Capital Oil has mismanaged shareholders’ funds. SEC must sanction the company and other firms involved in insider abuses to serve as a deterrent.”
“We are extending this warning to all the publicly-quoted companies in Nigeria. Wherever we see incompetence, we will expose them and ensure that SEC takes them over and where forensic audit needs to be done, we will make sure that it is carried out.”
“We are mandating SEC to take over the management of Capital Oil. We will invite SEC to come and tell us what they know about what has become of Capital Oil.”
“We will be inviting all the past management of Capital Oil Plc to come and explain how come a company that Nigerians invested their hard-earned money in can just go this way without explanations.”
“The House will follow the matter to a logical conclusion by ensuring that those who committed the abuses will be punished. Besides the abuse of shareholders’ funds, the committee also found out that the company is in tax deficit of over N70m.”
“We are not going to back down, no matter how highly-placed they are. It is disheartening that a Plc can go down without any explanation being made to Nigerians.”
“Anybody who played a part in this has explanation to make to Nigerians. It is pathetic to look at Nigerians in the face and tell them that their hard-earned money is gone. All those who are guilty will make account. That is what we are telling Nigerians. We assure them that justice must be served.”