CHIEF OKENMOR FIDELIS TILIJE

Commissioner of Finance

Born in 1958, from Obiaruku, Ukwani LGA, Chief Sir Fidelis Okenmor Chukuyenum Tilije was first appointed Commissioner for Water Resources Development, later Commissioner for Finance in the administration of Sen Dr Ifeanyi Okowa, a position in which he has been retained by Governor Sheriff Oborevwori.

A holder of Bachelor of Science degree in Banking and Finance from the University of Lagos, a Masters degree with specialisation in Corporate Finance and various professional certificates from the Harvard Business School, Boston, USA, and Oxford Business School, United Kingdom, he is a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers and the Chartered Institute of Marketers of Nigeria; an Associate Member of the Chartered Institute of Nigeria Stockbrokers; a member of the Presidential Committee on Offshore Banking in Nigeria; Bankers Sub-Committee on Interest Rates Reduction in Nigeria; Alternative Member of the Council of Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers and a Paul Harris Fellow.

Before venturing into private business with success in his ZEEP Engineering and Services Ltd, he had lectured at the Lagos State Polytechnic and had traversed the corporate world, from the Securities and Exchange Commission, to Deputy Manager, later Manager and Head of Investment Banking, Merchant Bank of Africa Nigeria Ltd; Manager, Assistant Vice President, Head, Corporate Finance, First City Merchant Bank; Chief Banking Officer/Deputy Managing Director, Standard Trust Bank Ltd; and Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Fortune International Bank Plc.

He is renowned for chairing the merger of eight banks under the Alliance Bank Merger Group by authority of the Central Bank of Nigeria.