There are indications that internal crisis is currently rocking the Association of Registered Freight Forwarders of Nigeria (AREFFN) even as some of the members may have established a faction.
AREFFN President, Dr. Frank Ukor gave the indication in a chat with some newsmen in Lagos last week. He alleged that two members of the board of the association who are co-founders, Ejike Metuh and Innocent Elum were responsible for the internal crisis.
Ukor said that his tenure as president of AREFFN has expired on 12th of August 2017, after a five years single term. He said that the Onne chapter Chairman of the group, Alhaji Balance Lawal Daura, who was allegedly sacked in June 2016 for alleged misappropriation of association funds, is now being paraded as the factional president.
Dr. Ukor however confirmed that at a National Executive Council meeting held in Apapa on 6th of November, his tenure was extended by six months with a mandate to conduct elections, call a general meeting and reconcile all the warring factions.
The embattled AREFFN president also fingered the founder of National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) Dr. Boniface Aniebonam as one of the engineers of the crisis rocking the association.
Speaking on the crisis, Ukor admitted that, "AREFFN has a big crisis, we have been managing the crisis and we hope that by the grace of God we would resolve it.
On 12th of August 2012 we had an election which is for five years though our constitution is silent on the tenure. 12th of August this year, our tenure expired.
Somebody engineered one of the founders to cause trouble over who is a declarant to collect the POF. Aniebonam (NAGAFF founder) took hold of it and started causing trouble he called one of us and brainwashed him"
"While this was going on, we have a chapter at Onne which is a vibrant area for all the associations. We had an agreement on how the proceeds from the chapter would be shared, but every time he was coming up with excuses. In June last year, we decided to have elections at Onne, so we appointed a caretaker committee. In annoyance he seized all the money we supposed to have, he went to the CAC and said that we are not using genuine documents, with connivance of some of us, he took the association to court"
"They started calling himself convener of AREFFN stakeholders"
"Now that our tenure has expired and we are not contesting, the NEC extended our tenure on 6th of November by six months. But I don't want to stay three months before the election is conducted and call for a general meeting"
Dr Ukor alleged that all the other associations inside the ports are stifling AREFFN of funds.
"Funds were not coming in and there were distractions, this is why we have not conducted an election" he said .
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