Ocheni: Kogi Academic Community Lauds Buhari

[caption id="attachment_18303" align="alignnone" width="600"]Prof. Stephen Ikani Ocheni[/caption]

The academic community of Kogi State University Anyigba, Kogi state, has expressed gratitude to President Muhammadu Buhari for selecting one of their own, Prof. Stephen Ikani Ocheni, for a ministerial post.

The group, which spoke through Dr. Usman Ogbo of the Political Science Department, also praised the state governor, Yahaya Bello, for his strategic role in the nomination of the erudite scholar and experienced public finance administrator.

Ogbo said the appointment of Prof. Ocheni will be a uniting factor for all the ethnic and religious diversities in Kogi State considering his track record in public service in general, and the academic community in particular.

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Ocheni a professor of Public Sector Accounting and currently the Dean of Faculty of Management Sciences obtained an MBA (Finance) from Enugu State University of Science and Technology in 1990 and bagged a PhD in Financial Management from the prestigious University of Nigeria, Nsukka in 2004 after successfully undergoing a rigorous M.Sc/PhD programme.

Ogbo said: “Being a man with a voracious appetite for knowledge, thoroughness and professionalism, Professor Ocheni took his quest beyond the shore of Nigeria as he embarked on series of professional training in the United States and the United Kingdom. These endeavours fetched him a Certificate in “Strategies for Home ownership”, from Howard University Washington DC, USA, Certificate in Internal Auditing with Computer Application from Worthing, West Sussex U.K, and Certificate in Project Financing and Sustainability, USA.

“His commitment to financial management, fiscal discipline and leadership responsibilities has taken him to the zenith of reputable professional bodies in the country. To this end, he has been a Fellow, Association of National Accountants of Nigeria (FCNA), Fellow, Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (FCTI), Fellow, Chartered Institute of Local Government and Public Administration (FCPA) and Fellow, Institute of Chartered Economists of Nigeria (FCE).

“He is a thorough professional and technocrat with unblemished records. In this regard, he has at various times served as Financial Controller (World Bank Assisted Kogi State Essential Drugs Programme), Director (Office of the Accountant General, Kogi State/ State Programme Accountant, UNDP) and Permanent Secretary, in Kogi State all between 1992 and 2003. At the Federal level, he was Deputy Director, Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, Director, Office of the Accountant General of the Federation and Director, Finance and Accounts, Ministry of foreign Affairs all between 2003 and 2013.

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“Professor Ocheni is a teacher and researcher of no mean repute. He was a lecturer in Accounting, Taxation, Cost Accounting and Management Accounting at the Federal Polytechnic, Idah, Kogi State between 1985 and 1993. His zeal for and commitment to research is demonstrated in the number of books written and scholarly articles published in reputable journals. These include six books in Accounting, Finance and Management issues published by the Spectrum Books Limited, Ibadan, forty two articles published in reputable international journals with many of them available online and six others published in local journals.”

Prof. Ocheni was recently nominated by the president to replace the former Minister of State, Labour and Productivity, late Barr James Ocholi, who died in auto crash over a year ago.

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