For those just getting to know Mohammed Bello Koko; he has been around for quite a long time as a seasoned finance and economics expert with experience in several strategic portfolios including Banking operations, Credit-Risk Management, Treasury Operations, Retail Banking and Corporate Marketing. With vast experience, he was in charge of the Energy sector and Public Sector, responsible for managing accounts of several multinational oil and Gas companies and maintaining Public sector relationships. He became a shining star in the banking firmament when He joined Zenith International Bank Plc in 2005. While he was in the bank, his growth was astronomic. He climbed the ladder of success from a Branch head, zonal Head Public Sector, Deputy General Manager and Zonal Head. With his robust background in the banking sector and corporate finance, the graduate of management Studies from the Usman Danfodio University, Sokoto was rewarded with an appointment in 2016 by President Muhammadu Buhari as Executive Director of Finance and Administration of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA). After performing excellently well, he was appointed in May 2021 as Acting Managing Director of the agency after his successor was suspended.
Since he assumed as the head honcho of the agency, the growth recorded has been tremendous. The public leadership graduate from Harvard Kennedy School, USA, infused a different touch to the way things are being done which lead to his confirmation by President Buhari on the 15th of February 2022. “Under his watch, he secured leakages in generated revenue which lead to a spike in the growth of the Agency’s Internally Generated Revenue. He also ensured improvement in operational efficiencies that led to a significant increase in container traffic to Onne Port, Warri, Calabar and Rivers port respectively to ease the congestion at the Apapa port.”
Despite his giant strides that are quite evident to all sundry, his detractors are still hell-bent on ensuring they pull him down with negative media reportage by some sections of the media to distract him from functioning at a full capacity. A close source divulged that; Bello Koko is unperturbed and unbothered by the negative misrepresentation his detractors are feeding the public with. It’s quite evident that some people are afraid and envious of his resounding success within the few months he had taken over and turned the fortune of the Agency around. He is currently in Umurah performing lesser Hajj and praying for the growth of the Agency and the country. All he is saddled with is to ensure the NPA meets his primary function and also continues to function in full capacity.“
