Remi Babalola

Aderemi W. Babalola was a Minister of State for Finance of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,[1] from July 26, 2007 to September 16, 2010.

A former banker, Remi resigned as minister under controversial circumstances in the wake of the furore generated by his claim that the state oil monopoly was broke.[2][3] In October 2008, Remi was appointed supervising minister for the federal capital territory, in addition to his responsibilities as finance minister; he operated in the former position until end-2008. Immediately after his claim on the oil monopoly's insolvency, Remi was moved out of the ministry of finance to the special duties ministry, a development which led to his immediate resignation as minister of the federal republic. He reportedly did not assume duty as special duties minister as at the time of his resignation.[4]

Regularly described as a “technocrat”,[5] Remi's stint in public office was marked by a concern with transparency that began with him being one of the first ranking federal government officials in the Umar Yar'Adua administration (2007/2011) to declare his assets. This focus on improving the public expenditure management framework led to his institution of curbs on the irregular deduction from source of funds from provincial and municipal governments's statutory allocations.

Before his appointment as minister, Remi was an Executive Director of First Bank of Nigeria Limited. His work experience includes his general manager role at Zenith Bank Nigeria Plc., and his auditing, consulting, training and development assignments in the banking and finance groups of Arthur Andersen and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

In 2009, Remi raised US$1 million to build a state-of-the-art clinic (known as Remi Babalola Red Cross Medical Centre) for the Nigerian Red Cross Society in Ibadan, the Oyo State Capital. The facility has since supported the delivery of primary healthcare services in Ibadan.

A graduate of agricultural economics from the University of Ibadan, Remi Babalola, a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria, the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria, and the Institute of Directors of Nigeria, also holds a Masters of Banking and Finance degree from the University of Lagos.