The National President, Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Prince Olayiwola Shittu has expressed happiness over the number of permanent secretariats so far commissioned at the chapter level during his over five years stay as the ANLCA helmsman.
Shittu who made his feeling known at the weekend while commissioning the permanent secretariat of the association built by the out gone Chairman of ANLCA, Seme Border chapter, Mr. Patrick Ozobialu, also expressed joy over the ability of the association to remain one during his first and second tenure as the National President.
According to him, “I do not know how to express myself and the depth of joy I have that during my time as the National President, I have had course to dedicate and commission offices all over the country in the name of ANLCA.
“If you go to Port-Harcourt, you go to secretariat, they say it belonged to ANLCA, I go to Tincan ANLCA office, I won’t forget that sometimes around 2010/2011, I was here to commission the foundation of this same secretariat. Today, it has gone from foundation to completion of the phase 1 and I am going to come back again under the watchful eye of the incoming Chairman. Do not plan a second tenure except I come here to commission the second phase and may the good lord support you to achieve that.
“History can always be made, it is man who makes history because it is you that will make history for historian to write about it and in the history of ANLCA today, in 2010 when we took office in the first tenure and 2014 when we took office for the second tenure, it has always been one ANLCA and you need to clap for yourselves.
“I will like to tell you that this President of ANLCA does not make me a magician neither does it make me a man that will turn blue to black. It is the calibre of people sitting down around me here at my back, national officers, chapter officers that have made ANLCA what it is and that is what Omaja (Ozobialu) has done by putting his name in the history book”.
While praising the dexterity of Mr. Ozobialu who he described as a man who could be seen from different perspective, the ANLCA boss further described him as a man who was very passionate about the issues of ANLCA.
He therefore appealed to the members of the association at the chapter to support the incoming administration of Mr. Bisiriyu Lasis Fanu to surpass the achievement so far recorded in the chapter since according to him; the success of the incoming administration at the chapter would translate to the success of all of them.
Earlier in his welcome address, the out gone Chairman, Mr. Patrick Ozobialu said the history of the secretariat dated back since 1994 when Senator Sanni Kamba held sway as the National President of the Association with Dr. Frank Ukor as the chapter Chairman.
Ozobialu recalled that worried by the plight of the agents who at that time had no place to keep their manual typewriters and other office valuable which were usually damaged by the vagaries of the nature at the open space from where they operated near the customs long room, Dr. Ukor made representations to the customs high command at Abuja adding that the effort birthed the allocation of the site of the permanent secretariat to the association.
He also mentioned the efforts of the succeeding Chairmen of the association at the chapter namely; Chief Chukwuma Uzoanya, Dr. Emmanuel Ogu Opara among others who at one time or the other presided over the affairs of the association at the chapter leading to the event that brought the people together at that point in time.
“Government is a continuum. The incoming administration will start from where I stopped and hopefully make improvements and adjustments where necessary. I am happy that the head of the incoming administration is a principal officer in the outgoing one. I congratulate the new executives. I urge them to be magnanimous in victory, sustain and promote our legacy of peaceful co-existence, transparency and accountability”, he urged.
Highlight of event was the presentation of awards to the deserving past and present leaders of the association both at the national and chapter level among whom is the Chairman, Board of Trustees of ANLCA, Chief Henry Njoku and the commissioning of the ultra-modern secretariat complex by the National President of the association, Prince Olayiwola Shittu among other side attractions.
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