Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari had some months ago approved the re-appointment of the entire board of the executive management of Nigeria Export-Import (NEXIM) Bank.

The formal board appointment is for a 5-year term and renewable for the same period, with the present management in office from the 10th April, 2017.

Extract – “Section 11(4) of the NEXIM Bank Act specifies that the Managing Director and the Executive Directors shall hold office for a period of five years and shall be eligible for re-appointment for a further period of five years.

“Accordingly, as the expiration of the first term drew near, it became necessary to appraise their performance since assumption of duties across the core mandate areas of the bank for the purpose of their re-appointment or otherwise.

“The outcome of the appraisal revealed that the current management team with the support of the board has performed as well as exemplified by key achievements.

“Evidently, the operating profit, previously in the negative (N8.030billion) at the inception of the current management, has increased to N3.825billion in 2021, and there is an improvement in returns on capital earnings from -15.31 in 2016 to 2.72 in 2021.

“There is a reduction in non-performing loans from 94% in 2017 to 29% as at December, 2021, and there is an increase in the total assets of the bank by approximately N136.132billion or about 222% from inception of the current management in 2017 to 31st December, 2021.

“There is an enhanced liquidity position of the bank through additional funding totallingN103.755billion from Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), N3.936billion from Federal Ministry of Finance, US$50million from the Nigerian Content Development Management Board (NCDMB) and US$25million from the African Export-Import Bank.

“The NEXIM has also made high growth in recoveries from N40.780million in 2016, preceding the current management to an annual average recovery of N1.243billion between 2017 and 2020 and a total collection of N11.903billion for the five-year period. – was contained at the time in a statement signed by Yunusa Tanko Abdullahi, the Special Adviser, Media and Communications to the Minister of Finance,

As a media organisation and by interests came across a social media press release trending about one of the reappointed executives in the name of Ms. Stella Erhuvwu Okotete, Executive Director (Business Development).

We needed to get the other side of the story if any and before our publication which led us to contact the Bank, and to verify the other information.

Her office refused to be dragged into the conversation but informed BEN Television that the trending news is the handy work of someone whom the Executive Director is very close to and had an issue about inter-party activities.

Our source told BEN Television that accordingly, the news peddlers were seeking for the Executive Direcrtor help to support their political ambitions and aspirations which the ED refused to partake in and will not play politics with her career or office. This led to the new wave of attack in the media bearing also the season political campaigning.

The management has decided to inform and report the matter to the relevant organisations and institutions as a responsible law-abiding citizen and professionals in a modern corporate institution.

Our in-depth checks also revealed that the act establishing the bank (NEXIM) to be wholly under the Central Bank of Nigeria’s rather than as specified in the media and social platforms.

More details soon….