A governance watchdog wants Nigeria’s top insurance regulator removed from office while authorities investigate a series of disputed fees and directives tied to the industry’s recent recapitalisation. The Good Governance Assembly (GGA) has petitioned President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to suspend Olusegun Ayo Omosehin, who leads the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM), pending what it calls an independent and transparent probe.
The demand arrives just weeks after the sector completed a major capital-raising drive that pulled in roughly N1.079 trillion. With fresh capital of that scale moving through the system, questions about how regulators managed the process carry significant weight for investor confidence.
Peter Bawa, the GGA’s Executive Director, signed a statement outlining the group’s concerns. Those concerns stem from formal complaints filed by NICON Insurance Limited and Nigeria Reinsurance Corporation with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Federal Ministry of Finance, and the Presidency.
The companies dispute several NAICOM requirements. These include a one percent levy on shareholders’ funds, mandatory transfers of recapitalisation money into Central Bank of Nigeria escrow accounts, and roughly N180 million collected for verification consultants whose appointment remains contested.
The Finance Ministry has already intervened, ordering NAICOM to pause enforcement of the disputed charges and escrow directives against the two firms until the petition gets resolved.
“These are not matters that should be dismissed as mere administrative disagreements,” Bawa said. “They raise fundamental questions about regulatory authority, financial accountability and the handling of shareholders’ funds.”
Meanwhile, NAICOM has rejected the allegations as false and misleading. The regulator maintains that its actions complied with the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act 2025 and existing guidelines.
The GGA insists those conflicting accounts make an independent review essential. It argues that leaving Omosehin in place during the investigation could create a perception of interference.
The group has urged the EFCC and Finance Ministry to establish the facts surrounding the disputed fees, the escrow directives, and how collected funds were managed. It pledged to keep monitoring the situation until public confidence in the regulatory process returns.
