The leadership crisis that rocked the Association Registered Freight Forwarders Nigeria (AREFFN) in the last seven months has finally been put to rest as the former National President and co-founder of the association, Dr. Frank Ukor has accepted and recognized Alhaji Bala Lawan Daura as the interim National President of the association.
It will be recalled that on the expiration of the five year tenure of Chief Frank Ukor and his executive on the 11th of August, 2017 and following the association’s inability to conduct election to usher in new executives at the expiration of Ukor’s tenure, the Board of Trustees (BOT) of the association appointed Alhaji Bala Lawan Daura as the interim National President for a period of one year with a mandate to conduct election for new executives to emerge within the period, a development which did not go down well with Chief Ukor.
Chief Ukor on his own claimed that the National Executive Council (NEC) of the association in November last year extended his tenure for a period of six months with a mandate to reconcile all the aggrieved members, convene an Annual General Meeting (AGM) for the association and conduct election for the new executive of the association to emerge, a claim the BOT members dismissed claiming that Ukor whose tenure expired on the 11th of August, 2017 had no locus to call any meeting of the association having served out his tenure as the National President.
But in a telephone interview, the interim National Secretary of AREFFN, Mr. Chidi Anthony Opara disclosed that at a meeting convened at the Benny Hotels, Festac, Lagos on the 20th of March, 2018 by the former National Secretary of the association, Ichie Frank Obiekezie and other stakeholders, both parties resolved to work together in the interest of the association.
Opara stated that at the meeting which had Chief Frank Ukor and his group in attendance, everybody was given the opportunity to speak even as he said that Chief Ukor raised some issues about how he is being treated by the interim National President and members of the Board and was reassured that nobody had any intention of pushing him aside and that as far as AREFFN is concerned, AREFFN remains grateful to him as one of the core founder of the organization and as former President.
According to him,” The Tuesday meeting was actually one of the meetings, it wasn’t really AREFFN meeting, it was a meeting summoned by a group of stakeholders in Lagos. The first meeting was held on the 2nd of March at a Hotel the called Aso Rock Hotel, I think it is located at Ikotun, we were not at the meeting. Actually, the convener of that meeting is the former National Secretary of AREFFN, Ichie Frank Obiekezie, they looked at the very little problem in AREFFN and they now resolved that the best thing to do to move the association forward is for the tiny faction who did not recognize Bala Lawan Daura as the new President to recognize him as the President so that we forge ahead as one body. They took that decision, they cleared that aspect of the problem and they recognized him as the National President.
“There and then, they took a decision to convene another meeting on the 15th of March at Rockview Hotel, at Festac for him to come and address the generality of members both those who did not recognized him, who had issues about how he emerged as President and those who were with him as their President. But somehow, Alhaji Bala couldn’t make it on that date. So he called Obiekezie to reschedule the meeting on the 20th of March when he will have chance to be around. His request was obliged him and the meeting was rescheduled for 20th March, 2018 at Benny Hotel, Festac.
“Before then, a letter was written to him and in that letter, he was addressed as the National President, the body of the letter read that the controversy surrounding his appointment as the National President has been cleared and that he is now invited to come and address the larger AREFFN membership. When they sent the letter, he minuted it to me as the National Secretary, that I should be there too because himself and his executives have to be there.
“The meeting started at 12.30pm and everybody was there, Chief Ukor and his small group were there, the convener opened the meeting and reiterated why the meeting was called and gave everybody the chance to speak. Of course, Chief Ukor raised some issues about how he was being treated. Well, he was assured that nobody had any intention of pushing him aside, that as far as AREFFN is concerned, AREFFN remains grateful to him as one of the core founder of the organization and as former President, there is no way he will not be relevant in the affairs of the association even though he is no longer the President.
“The climax of the meeting was that he got up and magnanimously, just like a father and told everybody that the matter was over and that whatever issues he has about the emergence of the new executive, for the interest of peace and for the forward movement of AREFFN, that he has let bygone to be bygone as he has now recognized Alhaji Bala and his executives and he hugged them”.
He however pointed out that in line with the mandate of the Annual General Meeting which according to him was the highest decision making organ of the association that a draft constitution ratified during the AGM be registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), the interim National Executive would put every machinery in motion to register the draft constitution to enable it conduct election in line with the provisions of the ratified constitution which he said was more elaborate.
When contacted, the former National President of AREFFN, Dr. Frank Ukor acknowledged that the meeting actually held and stated that the association had resolved it differences even as he said that somebody had to make sacrifice in the interest of the association.
In his words, “We have resolved our differences. Somebody has to make sacrifice for things to work, I have made some sacrifice in the interest of peace. I have accepted Bala as the interim President. Bala has to be in charge for the next six months and set machinery in motion for us to conduct an election.
“The Board will conduct an election and if Bala did well, he can contest the election and if he wins, he continues as President but all I can say is, there is peace now”.
Photo: Alhaji Bala Lawan Daura.
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