Posted by punchng.com on
The President of the Chartered Institute of Accountants of Nigeria, Dr Catherine Okpareke, has called on the oil companies.....
The President of the Chartered Institute of Accountants of Nigeria, Dr Catherine Okpareke, has called on the oil companies operating in the Niger Delta region to do more to develop the area.
Okpareke said that although the oil companies were trying their best, the problems of the area were enormous.
Speaking with journalists in Port Harcourt on Wednesday, she said many years of neglect had made the area to be grossly underdeveloped, and to reverse the situation, more needed to be done by the oil companies and other stakeholders.
She said, 'I want to believe that they are doing their best but we must appreciate that the problems are enormous and it will take time before they are completely solved. Where we are now, there is a lot of room for improvement."
She had on Monday called on corporate organisations operating in the region to be socially responsible.
She said that the institute had always supported the government's anti-corruption crusade and would not relent, urging ICAN members to maintain accuracy and integrity which the institute preached.
Oparkeke who is the 42nd president of the institute charged members of the public who accused ICAN's members of professional misconduct to present their facts before the institute.
She assured that any member of the institute who was found culpable of professional misconduct would be severely sanctioned irrespective of their position or where they came from.
According to her the institute did not have any sacred cow except those who rigidly followed its rules and regulations.
She disclosed that the institute was in the process of setting up a Financial Reporting Council with the aim of strengthening financial reports.
She said that council was been driven by the World Bank and added that the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Security and Exchange Commission and other agencies would have roles to play there.
Okpareke who is the fifth female president of the institute out of the 42 produced urged both Federal and State Governments to increase the slot allocated to women in the decision making body in the country.
She said that the current female appointed by the Federal Government had performed creditably well and with this the current 15 per cent allocated to the women should be increased to 30 per cent prescribed by the Beijing convention.
She noted that the debt forgiveness granted the nation by the Paris Club was made possible by the efforts of Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala.