Governor Benedict Ayade of Cross River state has taken the lead in involving younger Nigerians in different levels of government by appointing Asuquo Ekpenyong as the state’s Commissioner for Finance. Despite a few eyebrows being raised following his appointment, his experience at home and abroad alongside his accomplishments give no room to doubt his preparedness for this new political office.
- He is indeed young
Asuquo was born September 25th, 1985 and is currently 30 years old.
- He is a former student of prestigious King’s College, Yaba
Asuquo Ekpenyong attended King’s College Yaba, Lagos, where he obtained his West African Examination Certificate before proceeding to study Economics in the United Kingdom.
- He is not a politician
Though Asuquo played an integral role in Governor Benedict Ayade’s campaign team, he has no previous political record.
- He was a lecturer
He was is a former lecturer in the Banking and Finance department of the University of Calabar, Cross River.
- He’s a professional student
Mr. Ekpenyong studied Economics at the University of Reading, United Kingdom and was also awarded a distinction in his M.Sc. in International Banking and Financial Services from the same university. He attended the Key Executive Program at the Harvard Business School as well as the Global Executive Leadership Program at Howard University Business School. He also attended the Executive Management Development Program at the University of Pretoria, the Euro money Oil & Gas School London, among others.
- He has a lot of experience in finance
He worked as a financial analyst at Davandy Finance & Securities Limited, Lagos before relocating to Calabar. He established Iquasu Ventures Ltd in 2010, a haulage and logistics company before taking over as the MD of Chamley Bureau de Change Ltd. Later on, he was appointed as the Executive Director for Finance at Pearland Energy and Non-Executive Director at Ekondo Microfinance Bank Ltd, Calabar, Cross River state.
In addition to this, the new Cross Riverian commissioner, Asuquo Ekpenyong, is skilled in business planning, business strategy, financial modelling and corporate finance showing his versatility and competence in the area of finance.
