By Dike Onwuamaeze
The President and Chairman of Council of the Institute of Directors (IoD) Nigeria, Mr. Chris Okunowo, has declared that the new Code of Ethics of the institute to be launched on August 6, will provide guidance on topical issues such as whistle blowing, conflicts of interest, gifts and hospitality policy in Nigeria.
Okunowo, while speaking during a media briefing on the new Code of Ethics of the IoD Nigeria, recently, said it would provide “illustrative ethics examples and case studies to showcase the impact and effect on institutions of poor governance practices and ethics and the positive impact and benefits of good ethical practices on organisations.”
He said the IoD Nigeria prides itself as a, “champion of good corporate governance and our pride is our ability to spread the gospel of sound corporate governance in both the private and public sectors of the Nigerian economy.”
The President of the IoD Nigeria said the code would serve as a guide for all the institute’s members and personnel on the practice of sound business ethics and principles.
“Let me also add that though the Institute has always had a Code of Ethics, the governing council, at some point, decided to review the codes to conform to present realities and the current challenges faced by directors in their roles.
“One of the key mandates of the IoD Nigeria is to sustain standards, values, ethics, best tradition and continuously improve the capacities of Directors to fulfil their roles of delivering value to all stakeholders.
“The code, therefore, is IoD Nigeria’s commitment to maintaining its position as the leading professional body for directors in Nigeria while ensuring that its members adhere strictly to the principles of good ethics and governance in their endeavours,” Okunowo said.
He noted that the Code of Ethics of the institute was intended to standardise the practice of sound ethical values and principles among members and staff of IoD Nigeria and induce voluntary compliance with the highest ethical standards.
The code, according to him, aims at positioning the institute to monitor the conduct of its members and employees.
It is also the aspiration of the Institute that the IoD’s code of ethics would serve as a guide for other stakeholders on ethics.
The Chairman of the Ethics Committee of the IoD Nigeria, Mrs. Amina Oyagbola, said useful resources and documents were gathered within and outside Nigeria in the review of the previous code of ethics of the institute to address the current challenges and realities faced by directors.
