The House of Representatives sub-committee of the Capital Market on Regulation and Compliance has commenced probe into alleged sharp practices by some Public Limited Companies (PLCs) following plethora of petitions by shareholders in the sector.
Chairman of the sub-committee, Rep. Tony Nwulu, told newsmen in Abuja that the investigation was designed to sanitise the capital market and restore investors’ confidence in the sector.
According to him, over a 100 PLCs have been invited by the sub -committee to defend their operations against petitions submitted to the committee from across the country.
Investigations by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) revealed that the PLCs accused of sharp practices refused to make submissions as directed by the sub-committee.
“What we requested from the companies are their corporate governance status, assets valuation and other vital documents crucial in investigating the allegations.
“This is just to ensure that they are in compliance with the extant laws but some of the companies are already scared.
“Before this exercise we got clearance from the apex regulatory body, the Security and Exchange Commission, (SEC) as the sole aim is to restore investors’ confidence in the Nigerian Capital Market.
“The truth of the matter is that those hiding for now may have every cause to regret because there is no hiding place for them as we want to sanitise the sector for Nigerians.
“Those given a clean bill of health will be highly recommended because actually some of the companies lived above board but those making false valuation will have a case to answer,’’ Nwulu said.
A member of the committee who spoke under the condition of anonymity said” sanitisation is the key in this whole exercise because those who failed to comply where there is proof of unwholesome practices would be severely sanctioned.
“And those with proof of poor valuation, mostly the insurance companies will be handed over to the anti-graft agencies,’’ he said.
