By Adaobi Rhema Oguejiofor
Seplat Energy has appointed Mr. Christopher John Okeke, Mr. Udoma Udo Udoma and Mr. Babs Omotowa as Independent Non-Executive Directors of the Company.
This was revealed in a press release by the Company, where it stated that Mr. Okeke and Mr. Udoma will be joining the Seplat Board with effect from 1 December 2023, while Mr. Babs Omotowa will be joining the Board on 1 April 2024.
The Company embarked on the recruitment process in line with the Board of Directors’ Succession Forward Plan as set out in the Board Succession Strategy announced in the 2022 Annual Report and by Corporate Announcement on the 25 April 2023.
As stipulated in the Companies and Allied Matters Act of Nigeria (CAMA), the successor Chairman must already be a director and be voted in by the other directors by a simple majority. In addition, in accordance with Seplat’s Memorandum and Articles, the Chairman must be a Nigerian National.
According to the Company, Mr. Basil Omiyi and Dr. Charles Okeahalam, will step down from the Board on the 31 March 2024 after the 2023 Annual Report and Accounts have been finalised and approved by the Board. The election for the next Seplat Chairman will take place thereafter.
Mr. Christopher Okeke is a Nigerian Corporate Commercial lawyer, diplomat, and agribusiness expert, who graduated from Georgetown Law School with an LLM in 1979 and was admitted to the Nigerian Bar in 1980. He co-founded a major Nigerian commercial Law firm, Ajumogobia & Okeke, in 1984, where he served as the managing partner until his retirement in 2009. While in active legal practice, Mr. Okeke led his firm’s Project Financing and Privatisation Group, representing investors and banks over many years.
Mr. Udoma Udo Udoma CON, is an accomplished lawyer and seasoned board administrator. He attended St. Catherine’s College, Oxford, England, where he obtained a B.A. in Law and a B.C.L. degree in jurisprudence. He was admitted to the Nigerian Bar in 1978. He founded the Law Firm Udo-Udoma & Belo Osagie in 1983 and retired from active legal practice in early 2020. Whilst in practice, Mr. Udoma specialized in advising on Nigerian investment laws and the investment environment, particularly in the petroleum, energy, and natural resources sectors. He advised Nigerian and international companies on company law, corporate restructuring, mergers and acquisitions and the raising of financing in the capital and money markets, as well as on major construction and engineering contracts.
Mr. Babs Omotowa, on the other hand, is an international leader in the Energy industry across Europe, Africa, the United States of America, Asia, and the Middle East, in organisation leadership, commercial, strategy and operational roles spanning over 26 years. Mr. Omotowa holds a B.Sc. in Industrial Chemistry, a masters degree in business administration, specialising in Operations Research and Supply Chain Management, and an Honorary Doctor of Science. Mr. Omotowa was the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Nigeria LNG Limited (“NLNG”) for almost 5 years from December 2011 to September 2016, among other achievements.