Even with the appointment of a coordinator to act as its administrator, the intrigues surrounding the new Board of Trustees (BoT) of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) will not be put to rest until it elects a chairman.
SHIPS & PORTS DAILY learnt that forerunners for the chairmanship position of the board are pioneer chairman of the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN), Tony Iju Nwabunike; former president of the association, Ernest Elochukwu; and immediate past BoT chairman, Henry Njoku.
While Nwabunike’s popularity as first governing council Chairman of the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) and Elochukwu’s as one time president of the association places them on the spotlight, industry watchers and members of the association are of the opinion that Njoku stands a better chance having occupied the position for six years.
Western zone coordinator of ANLCA, Prince Ozor Chukwurah, told SHIPS & PORTS DAILY during the election of the new Board members in Warri, Delta State recently that he favours Henry Njoku’s return as BoT chair.
“Henry Njoku has gotten enough experience. He has the mind to absorb all sorts and manners of people in the association. I wish him to continue, I am not a member of the board but I will wish him to continue as chairman because his temperament can be controlled; he is so reasonable and I think he can do better than what he has done,” Chukwurah said.
But Njoku may not have impressed the other section of ANLCA members who claimed that he has been too soft to and failed to assert his authority to effect necessary radical changes as chairman of the association’s highest advisory body.
However the decision of who becomes their chairman lies in the hands of the board members as it is their prerogative to elect their leader.
Njoku told SHIPS & PORTS DAILY that he is content to serve the association as a BoT Chairman or not.
One major challenge against Njoku’s return as BoT chair is the Anambra factor as four of the nine board members are from Anambra State while Njoku is the only candidate of Imo State origin.
Tony Iju Nwabunike, Peter Obi, Dennis Okafor and Ernest Elochukwu, are all from Anambra State.
It is believed that the Anambrarians are plotting to have one of their own elected chairman while Njoku may have to rely solely on other non-Igbo members of the board to return as Chairman.
Pending the election of its chairman, however, the new board had at its inaugural meeting held at the ANLCA National Secretariat in Lagos last Thursday had picked a coordinator.
Taiwo Mustapha, the member with the lowest number of votes among the nine elected members, was unanimously chosen to act as board coordinator.
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