Buhari Appoints Fowler New FIRS Boss …Gusau As DG, Budget Office

President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed Dr. William Babatunde Fowler as the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).
Fowler was the chief executive officer/executive chairman of the Lagos State Board of Internal Revenue from 2005 to 2014.
Fowler is taking over as chairman with an enviable Resume.
Under his leadership, the Lagos State Board of Internal Revenue reportedly achieved a sharp increase in internally generated revenue from an average of N3.6billion per month in January 2006, to an average of about N20.5billion per month in 2013.
Fowler, who began his career as a marketing intern with Avon Products Inc., New York, was later employed by Johnson and Johnson in New Jersey USA, under a MBA International Development Program lasting one year. Thereafter, he was transferred to join Johnson and Johnson Nigeria between September, 1982 and September, 1983.
He made a career change from International Finance and Marketing to Banking in January 1984. In the banking industry he had the opportunity to work and also head broad and varied areas of banking operations and business development in two major commercial banks over the next 20 years.
He joined Commercial Bank (Credit Lyonnais Nigeria Limited) in January 1984, where he was exposed to all aspects of International Banking, Risk Management, and Clearing Operations. Positive reforms were introduced by him as the treasurer of the bank. He rose to the position of Apapa Branch Manager.
He left the bank for Chartered Bank in April 1990 as a Senior Manager where he spent the last 14 years in the banking industry.
Upon leaving the banking industry in 2004, Fowler joined the Lagos State Government and was appointed the pioneer Permanent Secretary/ Executive Chairman of the Lagos State Board of Internal Revenue on the 24th of November 2005, thereby upgrading the office of the Executive Chairman to the highest level in the Civil Service.
Fowler, who holds an Honorary Doctorate Degree of the Irish International University, is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria and the Business Management Association of the United Kingdom.
He will serve as acting executive chairman of FIRS until his appointment is confirmed by the Senate.
Similarly, President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday removed the Director General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Bright Okogu, from office.
The reason for his removal remains unclear at press time, but in his place, Aliyu Yahaya Gusau, has been appointed his successor.
Until his appointment, Gusau was the Director, Fiscal Policy, Budget Monitoring and Evaluation.
His appointment took effect from Tuesday, August 18, 2015, a statement by the Director of Press and Public Relations, Federal Ministry of Finance, Marshall Gundu, said.
Gusau holds a Bachelor of Science (BSc) Degree in Economics from Ahmadu Bello University Zaria.
However, the ex-DG until his appointment in December 2007, held several top positions, including Senior Economist, International Monetary Fund, IMF, in Washington DC; Senior Operations Officer at the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC, Fund and Market Analyst, OPEC Secretariat in Vienna, Austria.
He served as Special Adviser to the Minister of Finance (2004 to 2007) and also the pioneer Executive Secretary of Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI).