Female members of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) have complained of being deliberately sidelined from participating in the major decision making activities of the association.
One of the aggrieved women, who preferred not to have her name mentioned, said that female members of the association have been relegated to the background as their male counterparts dominate the association’s decision making body.
She said: “Do you see women sitting on the Board? Do we have any female ANLCA National Executive? Even the various committees, do you see a woman chairing any or even appointed as a member? It’s the men taking up everything.”
Another female member of the association who also pleaded anonymity, told SHIPS & PORTS DAILY that even organising the association’s social events, “which naturally should be left to the expertise of women” are completely taken over by the men.
“They do not carry us along. From the hiring of the hall and even the catering services are handled by the men,”she lamented.
When confronted with these allegations, the ANLCA National President, Prince Olayiwola Shittu, said that his administration has never marginalised the women within its fold.
He said he has always encouraged active participation of his female members in the association’s activities and supported their occupying leadership positions.
“Without discrimination of gender, you must hold or be a director of a licensed company as specified by ASECO and no woman has ever proposed, attempted, or indicated interest to be a member, having met the criteria of ASECO and be denied the opportunity to contest. Not to my knowledge, not now or my first tenure, never!
“We have rather made deliberate efforts to bring all the women in ANLCA together so that they can at least seek for whatever they want on a platform,” Shittu said.
Copyright Ships & Ports Ltd. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit given to www.shipsandports.com.ng as the source.
