The Lagos and District Society of the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (CITN) is set to prioritise professional competence, stronger member engagement and better resourcing as Yetunde Olowofoyeku begins her two-year tenure as chairman.
Olowofoyeku, who became the 20th chairman of the society on Saturday, said her administration would build on the district’s existing strengths through an agenda centred on Ownership, Competence, Commitment, Unity and Resourcing, which she described as the “O.C.C.U.R Era: Building on Excellence.”
The agenda comes as Nigeria’s tax system undergoes significant changes, increasing the need for tax professionals to keep pace with new rules, digitalisation and evolving business models.
Olowofoyeku said the district would strengthen its technical capacity through monthly meetings, technical clinics and other capacity-building programmes, with the aim of ensuring members can provide practical solutions to clients.
“The Institute confers on us the right to practise. The District must equip us with the edge to excel,” she said.
She also identified member commitment as critical to sustaining the district, urging professionals to participate actively in its activities and meet their financial obligations.
On unity, Olowofoyeku said the district must remain cohesive across differences in professional status, age and workplace, arguing that collective action would help attract new members and create more opportunities for professionals.
She said the administration would also pursue strategic partnerships and mobilise members’ time and expertise to strengthen the district’s resources.
“We have not come to begin anew, but to continue. We have not come to reinvent, but to reinforce,” she said.
Oyinkansola Okusanya, a SAN, the newly elected 33rd President Nigerian Bar Association, warmly congratulated Yetunde Olorunleke FCTI and commended the incoming executive, “your task is not simply to lead well. It is to make participation feel like ownership”
She emphasized their role is to govern in a manner that invites members in, and members are eager to participate in what the institute is doing.
“Legacy is the first pillar and it’s what happens when both sides show trust. The second pillar is trust. Members must give their leadership the benefit of good faith, the willingness to engage, to question constructively, to disagree without division, and to allow those who are elected to lead.”
Olowofoyeku said her administration would measure its success by the impact it leaves on the district rather than by the positions occupied by its members.
“Let us not merely occupy offices. Let us occupy impact. Let us not merely organise events. Let us organise excellence. Let us not merely own titles. Let us own our future,” she said.
Olowofoyeku brings experience spanning banking, entrepreneurship and taxation to the role.
She began her career at Continental Merchant Bank, formerly Chase Manhattan, working across corporate finance, foreign exchange, treasury and capital markets before moving into entrepreneurship.
In 1997, she founded House of Mahogany Ltd, which grew from a bespoke fashion business into a manufacturing operation employing more than 50 direct and indirect workers. She later expanded into interior and landscape design.
She returned to taxation in 2009 under the tutelage of her late father, David Ajibola Olorunleke, a founding father and pioneer president of CITN and former executive chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service.
She passed the CITN professional examinations within two years and subsequently became a Fellow of the institute. She is also a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Economists of Nigeria.
In 2024, she enrolled for an Executive Master’s Degree in Taxation at the University of Lagos, graduating with distinction in late 2025 with a CGPA of 4.79.
Olowofoyeku succeeds Iniobong Esau, whose tenure recorded 149 new members, 91 associate members upgraded to fellowship and 28 applications for new practising licences.
Esau said the district held 24 executive meetings and 18 general meetings during his tenure, with 1,138 members attending its monthly meetings.
The district also increased its building fund by N1.5 million during the period, while maintaining participation in national and zonal tax conferences and conducting public tax sensitisation activities.
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