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The Presidency has clarified that the Executive Vice Chairman and CEO of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), Babatunde Irukera, and the Director-General/CEO of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Alexander Okoh were relieved of their duties and not dismissed.
The Nation reports a statement signed by President Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale titled ‘President Tinubu dismisses two chief executive officers’ on Monday had elicited mixed reactions from many especially social media platforms.
Okoh was appointed BPE DG on April 13, 2017.
Irukera was appointed DG of the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) in April 2017, but after the transition of CPC into the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission in December 2019, he became the EVC.
Ngelale had said Okoh and Irukera were “dismissed” due to plans to restructure and reposition critical agencies of the federal government towards protecting the rights of Nigerian consumers.
In another terse release, Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, to President Bola Tinubu, Tuesday night explained that the president’s directive did not intend a dismissal.
Reacting, Onanuga said: “I have followed the concerns in the media on the report that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu dismissed Babatunde Irukera EVC/CEO, Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) and Alexander Ayoola Okoh — Director-General/CEO, Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE).
“The President’s directive did not intend a dismissal. The two men who have served our country were relieved of their duties by the President, as he scouts for their successors.
“The connotations implied in using the word dismissal were clearly not intended in the statement issued.
‘President Tinubu thanks the two men for their services and wishes them well in their future endeavours.”
