PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari’s assent to the Companies and Allied Matters Bill, 2020, recently passed by the National Assembly, will change the face of corporate governance in Nigeria.
The Registrar-General of the Corporate Affairs Commission, Garba Abubakar, said this in Abuja.
He said this just as he disclosed that the Commission was planning to introduce uniform fees for services, noting that discrimination in fees was very difficult to manage.
The RG spoke when the Chairman of the Board of Corporate Affairs Commission, Ademola Seriki, led the management team to visit the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Adeniyi Adebayo, and the Minister of State, Amb. Mariam Yalwaji Katagum, in Abuja.
He commended the President for signing the bill into law, particularly when considered from the standpoint that the country had not had any significant change in company legislation in the last 21 years.
The CAC boss assured that the Commission was ready to ensure that the new law is effectively implemented through issuance of regulations.
In order to achieve this, he said the commission would further collaborate with the National Assembly to ensure that the law is gazetted.
He also said the Commission would come up with regulations that would define certain transactions, particularly regulations of modern articles of association.
He said, “We had the former law, which was not extensive enough because various companies have been complaining and the provisions are not well encompassing.
“Now that we have the opportunity to come up with regulations on articles, it will go a long way in bringing a better governance structure for most of the companies and if we do well, companies don’t have to submit their own articles for registration.”
The CAC boss said the commission would also come up with uniform fees, noting that discrimination in fees was very difficult to manage.
He also said that only companies that were fit and proper should be allowed to engage in public procurements in the country.
The RG said there was a need to introduce Letters of Good Standing that would be issued by the CAC as part of the requirement for public procurements in Nigeria.
He noted that this would assist in stopping some of the abuses currently being experienced in the public procurement process.
Abubakar further explained that the letter would indicate the names and addresses of companies, names of directors, the nature of business of the company and whether the company is having any challenge with its creditors by way of receivership or liquidations.
Earlier, the Chairman, Board of CAC commended the Minister on his ability to ensure that the CAMA Bill, which was last amended in 1999, was signed into law by the President.
He said with the signing of the bill into law, Nigerians would now see a friendly environment in the area of commerce and industry and also in the capital market.
The minister, while responding, assured that the ministry would prepare a memo to the Federal Executive Council to approve the proposed regulations, which would become part of the processes.
Adebayo said he was looking forward to the regulations being put together by the CAC, adding that this would further provide the impetus needed in the current implementation of the ease of doing business reforms.
