Henry Uche
The Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators of Nigeria (ICSAN) has charged its new inducted members to be highly ethical and uncompromising as they go about their professional responsibilities going forward.
The President/Chairman of Council of the institute, Bode Ayeku, made this charge at the induction ceremony of the new members in Graduates and Associates levels cadre, tasking them to discharge their responsibilities with a touch of excellence in order to live up to the coveted appellation.
The President stressed that the institute places a great premium on adherence to ethics in all ramifications. ‘We have zero-tolerance for any act of ethical aberration. Any member found guilty of gross misconduct in defiance of dictates of ethics will have his or her certificate withdrawn and membership forfeited. We are committed to this principle without fear or favour, no matter whose ox is gored.’
Ayeku implored new members to remain invariably steadfast in their commitment to ethical uprightness, saying that it is part of the institute’s ethical injunction that new members should be the Corporate Governance Conscience of any organisation and establishment they find themselves.
‘We have regularly produced seasoned professionals over the years who had contributed their quota to the social-economic development of Nigeria, you too must do even greater in your respective organisations and Nigeria at large,
He encouraged them to be resolute and display resilience in their professional journey and never involve in any act that would drag the institute or the country in the mud while it’s imperative for them to pursue the promotion of corporate governance in Nigeria.
‘Your formal admittance into the membership of ICSAN professional family today should be rightly construed as the beginning of a new journey. It opens a new vista and commencement of life-long project that is committed to continuous learning for self-nurturing and improvement.
‘We have consistently promoted the ideals of Corporate Governance through the periodic issuance of policy papers and Guidance materials on Corporate and Public Administration. Today as we are admitting you into the Graduate and Associate categories of ICSAN, we are conducting the due rite of passage through which you are being called to higher responsibilities, not only as professionals in governance field but also as ambassadors of the Institute.
‘At ICSAN, we are fully aware of the responsibilities that devolve on us as a champion of Corporate Governance and always strive to seize every opportunity to point out the ways good governance principles can be employed to solve our contemporary problems. It is this preoccupation with a practical approach to engaging governance challenges with time-tested and reliable principles of best practices that normally informs the choice of themes in our annual programs.
‘By being inducted today, you are gaining a slot into the membership of a reputable Institute that is adjudged a beacon of light worldwide as far as knowledge, skills and competencies in the Secretarial Practice, Administration and Corporate Governance are concerned, you are being inducted into a professional institute whose qualifications are recognised in more than 70 (seventy) countries of the world.
‘All you have to do is to keep moving resolutely forward, toiling with passion and courage to gather requisite experience and hope for success that normally accompanies self-sacrifice, hard work and diligence,’ he stressed.