SEC to lay off senior staff members to cut down costs and boost revenue

Charles Abuede

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has announced that it is already considering cutting down costs which is resulting in revenue shortfalls by reducing its workforce. SEC stated that the layoff of staff will mostly affect its senior members of staff. Lamido Yuguda, the Director-General, SEC, made this revelation on Tuesday in Abuja while appearing before the House of Representatives Committee on Finance to account for their revenue generation and remittances into the Federation Account.

The SEC DG, who was honourably represented by Ibrahim Boyi, the regulator’s Executive Commissioner for Corporate Services, said the capital market regulator is determined to cut down on its cost of operation and boost its revenue as almost 80 per cent of its costs is staff cost.

“Unfortunately, almost 80 per cent of our cost is staff cost. So, we need to find a way of chopping off that cost and I think work is already going on. We are top-heavy, almost 50 per cent of our staff are from senior managers. So, that is the mandate I think we have taken as management and the board. And I am sure that in a matter of a few months, we will be able to come with a solution. But the idea really is to make the commission more sustainable and make sure that our revenue is going forward,” he said.

Lamido Yuguda, while speaking on the revenue remittances of SEC, said the commission had reconciled the accounts fully up to 2018. “You know, in 2020, there was a new directive by the Federal Government that whether you are a self-funding agency or not, 25 per cent of revenue that hits your TSA (Treasury Single Account) will be deducted and that has been going on. We are also going to factor that into our subsequent reconciliation with the Office of the Accountant General (of the Federation). Unfortunately, for SEC in 2019, 2020 and this year, we are likely to end up with some deficits because of the revenue shortfall.”

Meanwhile, Saidu Abdullahi, the Deputy Chairman, House Committee on Finance, who presided over the hearing, directed the capital market regulator to fully reconcile its 2019 and 2020 accounts with the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation and to explore ways of generating more revenue.