From Godwin Tsa, Abuja

A human rights group, Make A Difference Initiative (MAD), has called for the sack and prosecution of the Chief Executive Officer of Seplat Energy Plc, Roger Brown, over alleged racism, favouritism towards foreign workers and discrimination against the Nigerian employees of the company.

The group has hailed the Ministry of Interior for carrying out an investigation into the allegations brought against the expatriate by employees of the company.

Describing the actions of the ministry as a bold step in the right direction, the group expressed the need to put an end to foreigners treating Nigerians as second-class citizens, even in their own country.

Only recently, the Lagos division of the Federal High Court issued an interim order restricting Roger Brown from everyday running and management of the company.

The court also restricted Mr Brown’s proxies, agents and privies from managing the company until a decision is reached on a motion by some stakeholders on notice for interlocutory injunction.

The decision of the court was predicated by petitions stating allegations of racism, discrimination, favouritism and breach of corporate governance against the Seplat CEO.

Speaking at a press conference in Abuja, the Executive Director of MAD, Lemmy Ughegbe equally commended the FG for revoking the Work Permit, Visa, and Residence Permit of Seplat Energy’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Mr Brown, on account of breaching Nigeria’s immigration law.

The Ministry of Interior had written the management of Seplat Energy and its CEO, Mr Brown, of the outcome of its investigation over the allegations brought against the latter, which he refused to appear before it to defend despite several invitations.

“Investigation and records in the Ministry also revealed that Mr Roger Brown was in possession of CERPAC that was not based on validly issued Expatriate Quota approved by the Ministry of Interior resulting in the violation of relevant Immigration Laws and Regulations. As a result of these, the Honourable Minister has determined that Mr Brown’s continued stay in Nigeria is contrary to the national interest,” the Ministry of Interior stated in the said letter.

“This is one move that will help to restore the dignity of Nigerians in their own land and sound as a warning note to expatriate workers and firms who discriminate against Nigerians and treat them like slaves in their fatherland”, Ughegbe.

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MAD also applauded the interim order of the Federal High Court, Lagos, which barred Mr Roger Brown from parading himself as or continuing to operate as the CEO of Seplat or working for Seplat in any other capacity pending the determination of the suit brought against him by shareholders of Seplat over the indictment for racism by the Federal Government.

It is also right that the court also restrained the Chairman, Board of Directors, Seplat Energy, Mr Basil Omiyi, and all the Non-Executive Directors under him from continuing to run the affairs of the company in an illegal, unfair, prejudicial, and oppressive manner pending the hearing and determination of the Petitioner’s Motion on Notice for interlocutory injunction.

“Our organisation condemns in totality the corporate lies told by Seplat in paragraph two of its statement dated 9th March 2023, where it claimed that the allegations and petitions by the aggrieved Nigerian staff at Seplat Energy “have not been brought to the attention of Mr Roger Brown or Seplat Energy for a reaction.”

We are equally in possession of letters dated 9th February and 15th February inviting Brown to the investigative hearing. But he ignored both out of disdain for Nigeria and the Nigerian government. We wonder if a Nigerian citizen or corporate entity would dare such impunity and disdainful treatment of UK government and people on UK soil”, Ughegbe stated.

“We must put an end to foreigners treating Nigerians as second-class citizens, at best, or as slaves at worst. Many foreign nationals running businesses in Nigeria treat citizens with utmost disregard and put them through dehumanising conditions. We must bring this to an end,” Ughegbe added.

“We frown at the obvious dereliction of duty, complicity and irresponsibility of Seplat Board led by Mr Basil Omiyi, a Nigerian national, in quickly taking sides with the oppressors of our people on their own land”, he added

“It is the failure of leadership and complicity on the part of the Omiyi-led Board that Mr Brown freely perpetrated such racist and discriminatory practices in Seplat without any preemptive measures or sanctions by the Board Chairman and the Non-executive Directors whose responsibility it is to ensure that Seplat is run in accordance with the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Good Governance Codes for which the company was known until recently”, he added.

“It is the failure of leadership and complicity on the part of the Omiyi-led Board that Mr Brown freely perpetrated such racist and discriminatory practices in Seplat without any preemptive measures or sanctions by the Board Chairman and the Non-executive Directors whose responsibility it is to ensure that Seplat is run in accordance with the laws of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Good Governance Codes for which the company was known until recently”, he added.

He said “it is even a greater display of irresponsibility that the Omiyi-led Board failed to employ internal mechanisms to interface with the employees to resolve the matter before they were left with no choice but to seek the intervention of the Ministry of Interior.

“It a crying shame and lack of patriotism on the part of the Board to quickly come to the defence of Roger Brown with a vote of confidence while also describing the allegations as “spurious” even without any form of investigation on its part. It hurts that a Board of Directors headed by a Nigerian would so slavishly and irrationally throw the citizens of Nigeria under the bus in their own country,” he added.