The appointment of Zach Adedeji as the acting Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, FIRS, has not stopped amazing the critics of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Adedeji was appointed on Thursday by the president to replace Muhammad Nami, according to a statement released yesterday by Ajuli Ngelale, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity.
The statement said, “President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of Zacch Adedeji as the new Acting Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).
“The President has directed the erstwhile FIRS Chairman, Mr. Muhammad Nami, to proceed on 3 months of pre-retirement leave, as provisioned by Public Service Rule (PSR) 120243, with immediate effect, leading to his eventual retirement from service on December 8, 2023.
“Adedeji is hereby appointed in an acting capacity for 90 days before his subsequent confirmation as the substantive Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service for a term of four (4) years in the first instance.”
The appointment has elicited reactions from the president’s critics who said Tinubu has yet to recover from the sack of Babatunde Fowler, his ally as FIRS Chair by former President Muhammadu Buhari.
Fowler was sacked by Buhari on December 9, 2019 by the former leader who appointed Nami in his stead.
Buhari, according to those familiar with the tax generating agency decided not to reappoint Fowler because of the perceived feud between his and Tinubu at the time.
“The former president new that Fowler did well by turning around the agency. But he decided to sack him, and appoint somebody from the north, even though Fowler deserved a reappointment for refocusing the agency,” a source said.
The sin of Fowler, a former Chairman of the Lagos Internal Revenue Service, LIRS was his closeness to the former Lagos governor, he stated.
The source said Tinubu decided to “pay Buhari back in his own coin” by sacking the man he appointed, and replace him with his own person even though Nami has not been found wanting in any way except that ” he’s Buhari’s man”.
He added that the president has decided to appoint Adedeji from “day one” that he was sworn in as commander-in-chief, but decided to appoint him Special Adviser on Revenue to understudy the FIRS pending the time “Nami will be kicked out.”
Instructively, Adedeji is a close a trusted aide of Tinubu, according to those familiar with his trajectory as a former Commissioner for Finance in Oyo state.
It was Tinubu that recommended him to late Governor Abiola Ajimobi who appointed him into his cabinet after becoming governor through the support of Tinubu.
A first-class graduate in accounting from Obafemi Awolowo University, Adedeji has been acknowledged as a technocrat in his field.
He was a former Executive Secretary / chief executive officer, CEO, the National Sugar Development Council, NSDC.
His appointment takes immediate effect, the Presidency said in the statement.
