The President of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Custom Agents (ANLCA), Prince Olayiwola shittu, has advised members, particularly those in the Western Zone Chapter, to avoid patronizing those who parade themselves as godfathers ahead of the forth-coming Chapters Elections in the Zone.
Shittu gave the warning while addressing executive officers and members of chapters of the Western Zone at a Zonal meeting held under the auspices of the office of the Zonal Coordinator, Comrade john Alfred Ofobike at the National Secretariat, Amuwo Odofin, Lagos, recently.
According to him, godfatherism has nothing positive to offer in the polities of ANLCA, instead, it causes division and unhealthy rivalry among members.
He warned that patronizing godfathers or encouraging godfatherism in the electoral process would jeopardize the dream of building a great, united and truly professional association.
He reiterated his strong desire to work towards ensuring total unity and professionalism of ANLCA during his tenure as National President, and called on all members to key into that vision.
‘’ We should not allow negative forces to divide us because of elections. Elections would come and go, and ANLCA will remain as one, so there is no need playing into the hands of self-styled godfathers who have nothing positive to offer,’’ he cautioned.
Earlier, in his opening address, the Western Zonal Coordinator, ANLCA, Comrade John Ofobike, told members that his office, in conjunction with the Association Electoral Commission (ASECO), was poised to ensure that the forth-coming Chapters elections in the Zone were hitch-free.
He said the crisis which usually trailed elections in the Zone in the past were due to the activities of those with self-interest and interior motives.
ANLCA, he said, was a professional body and any anybody aspiring to leadership position, should have the greater interest of the association at heart.
He therefore, warned against those playing tribal polities in the association to desist from it, adding that there is no room for such people in ANLCA.
‘’The era of seeing Apapa Chapter as being for Yorubas, Tin-Can Island Chapter for Igbos and the like, no longer holds water in the electoral process.
“ANLCA operates on free and fair electoral process based on the ASECO guidelines. Every qualified member has equal opportunity to aspire to any position in the Association.
“People should not have the erroneous believe that any member of NECOM, BOT or self-styled godfather can influence ASECO to unduly favour any aspirant or candidate in elections”, he said.
Comrade Ofobike commended the ASECO Chairman, Alhaji Abdulazeez Babatunde Mukaila and his team for building a credible data base to ensure a level playing ground for all aspirants.
On his part, the Chairman of ASECO, Alhaji Abdulazeez Babatunde Mukaila, commended the Zonal Coordinator for taking special interest in the electoral process.
He said the involvement of the Zonal Coordinator in the sensitization process, had been of tremendous help to the electoral body in its preparations for the forth-coming Western Zone Chapters’ Elections.
Alhaji Mukaila stressed that ANLCA was a professional body of customs brokers and that without a customs license; one had no business even being a floor member, not to talk of aspiring to occupy a leadership position.
He said the election procedure was open to all to know who was qualified or not to participate.
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