… As Nwokeoji Inaugurates Emeka Chukwumalu as Chairman
Following the controversies that trailed the collation of election results of the Apapa chapter of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents, ANLCA, leading to the election in the chapter being declared inconclusive, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, BoT, Alhaji Taiwo Mustapha has finally said that the association would be forming a unity government in Apapa as a way of settling the controversy which preceded the election in the chapter.
Speaking during the inauguration of the newly elected chapter executive in Lagos recently, Mustapha recalled how the chapter elections started on “a very good note” from Kano chapter, where members for the first time in the history of the association, were able to line up themselves with seven contestants unopposed and they all came in like that as a united and unity government in Kano.
While acknowledging that the elections in the Eastern zone were amicably conducted and the results came out without blemish, he, however, disclosed that that could not be said about the Western Zone where he said that the association had about 70 percent of its members nationwide.
“Of course, where you have that, there may be some issues. Among all the chapters, we were able to conduct elections in all of them without having any problem. But I must not fail to mention that in Apapa, we had issues”, he said.
Speaking on how they came about the crisis in Apapa, he said, “I must thank God that day when the hall was becoming rowdy and the whole thing was about to turn to bloodshed, God gave us, at the leadership level, the wisdom to be able to calm it down. And when we saw that, we quickly announced that that election was inconclusive.
“And when you say that an election is inconclusive, that is to say that whatever is the material that was used in conducting that election, will be revisited and reviewed and come out with whoever must have won.
“But I must tell you that based on facts available to us at the leadership level, some of the observers went away with the ballot papers that day. So, we couldn’t retrieve all the ballot papers in the hall. And it became very difficult for us to actually declare who was actually the winner of Apapa. So, it became a case of no winner, no vanquished.
“And I want to tell all of you here today that what we have simply done in Apapa issue was that we were having two options of either to go back and conduct the election again, or to call all those who are concerned in Apapa issue.
“But thank God that having been able to speak with all of them, all the contestants on both sides, I am happy to announce to all of us that we have been able to harmonize them and we are forming a unity government in Apapa. So, what we have been able to do is that from both side, we have been able to pick all the seven contestants in what we could see as the final winners from both sides in order not to create any acrimony or animosity in that chapter”, the BoT Chairman explained.
He, thereafter, appreciated the duo of the ANLCA National Vice President, Prince Segun Oduntan and the Zonal Coordinator, West, Anifowose for taking the pain to harmonize the opposing camps in the last chapter elections in Apapa and bringing them to agree on unity government.
“So, also, I must say that two key people are very important in that arrangement as well and I want to call them out and they are the two Chairmanship contestants, for them to have been able to agree within themselves that whatever the leadership decides, is okay with them. I think it is something we mustn’t overlook and that is commendable”, he added.
Speaking further, Mustapha who did not give details of the shape the unity government was going to take, however, dispelled some of the rumours surrounding the appointment of the Association Electoral Committee, ASECO Chairman said, “I heard so many noises and so many insinuations that so many negative comments coming from here and there and one of them is accusing ASECO of being bias. But I must tell you that as far as we are concerned in the BoT, our ASECO has done 90 percent good job for us.
“As human beings, there may be some shortcomings or some errors in some places, and on that note, I started hearing some comments that oh! Chief Elochukwu appointed his brother and he’s using his brother against us. I want to tell all of you here that there’s nothing like that. Chief Elochukwu was not the one who appointed Obiorah, I nominated Obiorah into ASECO and Obiorah has not in anyway, so far, I can tell all of you, has been able to do in line with what any human being can do. He has been able to report to me directly as the electoral process was going on.
“So, for whatever impression anyone is having, please I want you to correct that. Obiora, yes, he is the Chairman, there may be misunderstanding between the Chairman of ASECO and probably any member of ASECO, that has been sorted out and I can tell you categorically clear that they all worked in harmony and we are all together.”
Meanwhile, during the swearing in ceremony, the National President of ANLCA, Mr. Emenike Nwokeoji sworn in Chief Emeka Chukwumalu popularly known as Akwudoleze as the newly elected executive Chairman of the Apapa chapter of the association with Kayode Jejeloye as his Vice Chairman.
Other members of the Integrity Team which Emeka Chukwumalu leads that were sworn into office that same day included Sir Tony Anakebe and Chief Chima Idika who was also inaugurated in absentia.
Meanwhile, the trio of Alhaji Rasaq Saheed Ishola who contested alongside Chief Emeka Chukwumalu as Secretary, Dona Nweze as Assistant Secretary and Olodan Abdulakeem as Financial Secretary were not sworn in suggesting that they may have been sacrificed for the unity government to take effect.
However, a source from the Apapa chapter who would not want his name in print because he has not been authorized to speak said that there was not time Chief Chukwumalu went into an agreement to form a unity government in the chapter saying that that could be visible going by the look in Chief Emeka Chukwumalu ‘s face when the BoT Chairman called him and his opponent out for a handshake.
The source queried the rationale behind replacing those who genuinely won election with those who did not win election just to protect and interest and an agenda noting that such an arrangement would not stand as it was bound to fail.
How the unity government is going to pan out with two strange bedfellows in Apapa chapter of ANLCA is yet to be seen in the coming days.
Photo: New Chairman of ANLCA Apapa chapter, Emeka Chukwumalu (2nd left) and his executive team after their inauguration at ANLCA headquarters
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