(L-R) Tayo Olatunji, category business manager, Nescafe and Tucci Goka, innovation manager, Nestle Central and West Africa at the Nestle national final of the Nestle African revelation in Lagos recently.

A last minute rally by the management of Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) averted what could have been a row capable of sending jitters down the spine of investors who have been anxious to witness a rebound in the stock market as the workers of the commission suddenly dropped a plan to commence a strike action last week.
BusinessWorld investigations can reveal that Arunma Oteh, director-general of SEC and the staff of the commission have been at a cold war. The workers were not happy over Oteh’s refusal for an outright approval for the payment of some of their allowances since her appointment. Her decision to refer such due rights to the salaries and wages committee of the board forced a good number of the workers to initiate some reactions which would have culminated in a strike action this week. However, SEC management hurriedly prevailed on the board to quickly release the approvals for immediate payment which made the workers to cancel the planned strike action.
There were strong indications that Oteh’s stance was as a result of perceived high level of wastage in the system as well as the erosion of due diligence in the commission, two ills which the new director-general considered inimical to her mission at the commission. Her stance was believed to have drastically polarised her office with the commissioners in the commission.
BusinessWorld gathered that some of the stakeholders who are very angry with the reforms are even making threats to her life. But this we could not confirm this from her as she could not respond to a text message we sent to her in this regard neither did she pick her call when we tried to reach her.
But SEC’s media manager, Lanre Oloyi who spoke to BusinessWorld said that, “I do not know about threat but what I know is that the DG is determined and focused to right all wrongs committed in the market. Any threat to her life is a joke. The DG is in high spirit.
All these are being said because people have refused to change. She cannot bend easily under threat and she is so passionate about her job. Our lives are in the hands of God. Nobody takes life except God”.
Oloyi who spoke in parables did not disclose where such threats were coming from.