The National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) PTML chapter now has a new Chairman.
Chief Goodluck Onunji, popularly known as Eze-elect, was last Friday elected chairman to replace the missing Cosmas Ndimkora who was kidnapped three months ago and is yet to be released.
Onunji contested for the position with two opponents and emerged with the highest number of 49 votes defeating Austin Oparah who had 31 votes and Sam Onyekuru’s 2 votes.
A total number of 82 votes were cast during the election.
Onunji while speaking with SHIPS & PORTS DAILY after the election said that he dedicates his victory to his missing predecessor while praying for his safe return back.
He promised to work assiduously with his team of executives to take his chapter and the association as a whole to a higher level.
Election for other executives of the chapter was already conducted prior to that of the Chairman.
The elections conducted March 27, 2014 witnessed George Okafor emerge Vice Chairman; Orji Dukurgbo as Secretary; Ibuchim Nworgu as Assistant Secretary; Obinna Nwokeforo as Financial Secretary; A C Mbuba as Treasurer; Obehi Melody as Welfare Officer; Thomas Aler as Customs Agents Relations Officer; Onyinye Uka as Discipline/Intelligence Officer; and Raphael Emenike as Ethics and Compliance Officer.
Also speaking with SHIPS & PORTS DAILY after the election, the NAGAFF Electoral Commission (NECOM) Chairman, Okey Nerus, said that NECOM deemed it fit to conduct election for the chairmanship position of the chapter even in the absence of its kidnapped chairman to avoid crisis in the chapter.
He said: “There was a peculiar situation at PTML. In fact the whole of PTML was asking that we shouldn’t even conduct election there because of what happened to their immediate past chairman. When that request came up we sensitized them about the dangers of allowing a caretaker committee take over the chapter come March 31st when the then executives’ tenure would have elapsed. They saw reasons with us and we said that in respect of the past Chairman whose whereabouts up till now is still unknown to us, that was the reason why we conducted election into other offices leaving that of the Chairman until now”.
But during further consultations there was this argument that if we allow that position drag on for a very long time it would create a constitutional crisis in that chapter and that was exactly what we were trying to avoid. That is basically why the management and NECOM decided to hold the election today so that all the elected officers will be sworn in together next week” he further explained.
So far, election has been conducted for a total of six chapters in the western zone of the association.
Apart from Apapa, Tin Can, KLT and PTML chapters, election has been conducted for Lilypond and Murtalla Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) chapters remaining Ikorodu, Idiroko and Seme.
For Lilypond chapter, Reverend Emmanuel Agubanze was elected unopposed as Chairman while Segun Musa was returned Chairman MMIA chapter also unopposed
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