The Board and Management of the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, this morning gave further concrete expression to the Commission's 8-Point Agenda, particularly the eight point of the agenda related to operational efficiency and regulatory excellence, as it proclaims to the agreement of industry stakeholders, the activation of the enforcement of the telecom industry Code for Corporate Governance.
By this declaration, the Code has become part of the extant regulatory instruments for telecommunications operation in Nigeria.
Professor Umar Danbatta, the Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, speaking at The Renaissance Hotel Lagos, venue of the Stakeholders Sensitization Workshop on the provisions of the Code, said the centrality of telecommunication to all spheres of the Nation's life demands that "we raise the standards of leadership and management in the sector to sustain the sector's role as a driver of economic growth".
The code, which has been in existence for four years, had earlier been presented to stakeholders in 2016 at an all-inclusive forum, as an instrument which provisions are mandatory. Therefore, today's event marked the commencement of the enforcement of the Code, indicating that NCC has activated the processes for monitoring compliance by sectoral players.
One of the key items in the Code is that the offices of Chairman and that of the CEO shall not be occupied by one person concurrently in any telecom company in Nigeria. In addition, no one can serve as a director in any telecom company for more than 15 years.
The significance of today's event is evident in the presence and participation of the Chairman of NCC Board of Commissioners, Senator Olabiyi Durojaiye; the Executive Commissioner Stakeholder Management, Mr. Sunday Dare; other top management staff of NCC; representatives of Mobile Network Operators; and a broad spectrum of other telecom industry stakeholders.