By Patience Chat Moses
After being hit so hard by boardroom storms and corporate turmoil in recent months, Seplat Energy has shown its expertise in overcoming all of that in record time. Barely few days after the Company was in the news over alleged acts of racism involving its former Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Roger Brown, the company was again in the news over alleged false representation by its former Chairman, ABC Orjiako.
Orjiako, in a suit, was also accused of acting unilaterally when, without the consent of the firm’s Board of Directors, he communicated with the Federal Government over a business transaction worth over $300 million.
However, on April 20th this year, Seplat Energy announced that it has become aware of the Notice of Withdrawal/Discontinuance of the legal action that was previously instituted at the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja by the Nigeria Immigration Service, acting for the Federal Government of Nigeria, against the company and some of its Directors and Officers.
Mr. Roger Brown
The Notice of Withdrawal/Discontinuance of the action, dated 6th April, 2023, was issued by the Director of Legal Services of the Nigeria Immigration Service stating in part that “the Claimant hereby discontinues all the proceedings in this charge against the above-named Defendants”.
Seplat Energy says it continues to engage with the Federal Ministry of Interior to bring to a close, the false allegations presented to the Ministry as a result of which the residency status of its Chief Executive Officer was withdrawn.
Valuechain reports that the company also referred to its announcement of April 6, 2023 confirming that the Federal High Court sitting in Lagos had vacated the exparte Interim Orders against Seplat, its CEO and its Board Chairman, including the orders that restrained the Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Roger Brown, from participating in the running of the company.
But in the midst of all the legal controversies and challenges, Seplat Energy has continued to stay committed to contributing to the growth of Nigeria, especially in the education sector.
For instance, as part of its contributions to the success and development of the country, Seplat Energy embarked on the Seplat Teachers’ Empowerment Programme (STEP) in December, 2020. STEP is an initiative aimed at empowering teachers and Chief Inspectors of Education (CIEs) in Edo and Delta States with the requisite knowledge and skill sets to excel in extending STEAM-model learning to their students. Seplet Energy says it considers teachers as the critical success factor for the STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) learning model.
Ifeanyi Okowa
On April 14, the Company held the graduation ceremony of the beneficiaries of the 2022/2023 edition of the STEP initiative. The celebration was accompanied with an Education Roundtable and the Seplat Teachers’ Empowerment Programme (STEP) Award Ceremony for a total of 271 beneficiaries, comprising of 260 teachers and 11 CIEs who were trained for the 2022/2023 edition.
The STEP initiative by Seplat Energy builds teachers’ competencies to teach the STEAM model of learning to secondary school students in order to promote their creative thinking abilities, allow for higher student engagement, and offer a well-rounded education where Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics are equal contributors to the process of learning.
The programme provides teachers access to STEAM learning through workshops and a customized e-platform with a collection of STEAM resources that teachers can access on a free device provided by Seplat Energy.
According to the Director of External Affairs and Sustainability at Seplat Energy, Dr. Chioma Nwachuku, secondary school teachers in public and private schools in the company’s host states were open to benefiting from the programme.
“The STEP programme has been enormously impactful in touching over 25,000 students within the third year of developing the programme. It has recorded a total of 634 beneficiaries, which comprise 574 teachers and 60 Chief Inspectors of Education (CIEs),” said Dr. Nwachukwu.
Over the years, Seplat Energy has invested significantly in other educational Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programmes, such as the PEARLS Quiz Competition to support the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Number 4, which promotes education for all.
Seplat Energy’s Director of New Energy, Effiong Okon, who commended Edo and Delta State governments for providing a conducive business environment for the company, said Seplat’s new energy focus ties strongly to “the sustainability programmes in our host states and Nigeria at large.”
He added that “Seplat Energy craves for innovation and excellence, as it continues to empower teachers and CIEs, and remains committed to celebrating the success stories of the benefiting teachers, as well as the students that are being impacted.”
To commemorate the certificate presentation ceremony, Seplat Energy hosted a chat session to further deliberate on the role of technology for quality education, aligning with the theme of the Education panel discussion, which was “Transforming the Education Workforce.” The discussion, which had tech professionals, educational and technological experts and officials, was highly engaging.
The panelists comprised Dr. Chioma Nwachuku, Director, External Affairs and Sustainability, Seplat Energy; Mr. Yinka Akibu; M&E Specialist, UNDP Spotlight Initiative; Kemi Sokenu-Morris, Chairman of the Executive Council, Sustainability Professionals Institute of Nigeria (SPIN); Audrey Odogu, Philanthropies Lead, Microsoft; and Birghitta Eno Okodugha, Permanent Secretary, Information Communications Technology Agency, Edo State. The session was moderated by Dr. Mories Atoki, who is the Chief Executive Officer, African Business Coalition for Health.
While delivering his keynote address, the Edo State Commissioner for Education, Dr. Joan Oviawe, stated that “technology remains critical to transforming the education workforce, and that the 21st Century interaction between teachers and students could be massively impacted and boosted leveraging the right technologies and methods.
She called for project-based and competency-based learning approaches in schools, adding that “our teachers must become technologically-savvy at this time. Data gathering has become very key now and technology provides the right platforms.
“It is a new era and we are in a new world. Thanks to Seplat Energy and its partners for leading this journey.”
The Governor of Delta State, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary, Delta State Ministry of Basic and Secondary Education, Mr. Augustine Oghoro, commended Seplat for its people-focus initiatives, saying the interventions were timely given the need for teachers and students to be equipped with relevant skills to become global champions.
Speaking on the Company’s commitment to the sustainability of the programme, Dr. Nwachuku said “we strongly believe that education is the bedrock for national development and our STEP deployment aims to enhance teachers’ competencies and empower them with the knowledge and skills to implement STEAM education, amongst other benefits.
“Seplat Energy is committed to providing this programme annually because of its relevance and positive multiplier effects on boosting quality education,” she added.
For many years, Seplat Energy says it has continued to drive positive change in the Nigerian educational sector with a strong bias for innovation and technological progress. The company equally craves for the appropriate application of same to schooling, as new competencies could become game-changers for the country and the Nigerian people.
With STEP, it is believed that Seplat Energy will boost value creation in the country’s education sector for the realization of quality learning.