President Bola Tinubu has appointed Zaccheus Adedeji as Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) in an acting capacity for a 90-day period before his subsequent confirmation as the head for a term of four (4) years in the first instance.
Chronicle NG reports that Adedeji became the substantive FIRS CEO after outgoing Muhammad Nami was relieved and proceeded with a three-month pre-retirement leave.
Chronicle NG highlights ten (10) things to know about the late substantive FIRS boss.
1. Zaccheus Adedeji is under 50.
He was born Zaccheus Adelabu Adedeji on January 8th, 1978, in Oyo State, south-west Nigeria.
2. Raised by cocoa merchant
Adedeji was raised in the Iwo-Ate community of Ogo-Oluwa local government area of Oyo State and comes from a family with a long history in the cocoa industry.
His late father, a cocoa merchant, exposed him to cocoa trading, which reportedly shaped his early understanding of the economic world. Cocoa was a major agricultural export commodity in Nigeria and a top foreign exchange earner in the 1950s and 1960s.
3. First-class graduate
Adedeji holds a first-class degree in accounting from the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State.
4. Bagged certificate at Havard Kennedy School, USA
He also has a certificate in comparative tax policy and administration from the Harvard Kennedy School in the United States of America (USA).
5. Former special adviser on revenue to President Tinubu
Adedeji was appointed special adviser on revenue to the president on June 20, 2023.
6. Tax and public finance development expert
Adedeji is an accountant and corporate tax and public finance development expert. He has years of experience in corporate accounting, public service administration, and public service advisory for a corporate multinational, state governments, and the federal government of Nigeria.
7. Member of reputable professional bodies
He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Accountants (FCA). Also, he is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) as well as the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN).
8. Former Oyo commissioner
The CEO of FIRS was a one-term commissioner for finance in Oyo, a position he held between 2011 and 2015 under the administration of Governor Abiola Ajimobi.
9. Reduce Oyo State’s debt by 50%
Adedeji successfully managed Oyo State’s finances without incurring new debts.
He boasts of not incurring a new debt for Oyo State while in office as commissioner, as well as reducing the state’s debt exposure by 50%.
10. Former secretary of the National Sugar Development Council (NSDC)
Adedeji was appointed as the fifth substantive executive secretary of the National Sugar Development Council (NSDC) in March 2021 by former President Muhammadu Buhari. In driving the growth and development of the sugar sector in Nigeria, he conceptualized it in 26 months.
