Oluyinka Onigbinde
The acting national president of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) Dr. Kayode Farinto said he received a divine revelation where God told him he will remove the fuse of those disturbing the peace of the association.
Farinto, while speaking during a courtesy visit of the association to the Executive Chairman of Fano Shipping Agencies Limited, Eze Damian Emeka Obianigwe, last Friday, said God gave him the divine message and urged those who are against the present administration to repent or else the fuse that gives light to them will be removed.
However, Farinto, while seeking the support of Eze Obianigwe, disclosed that ANLCA is opened to reconciliation, while urging the royal father to call the Igbos in the association who are causing trouble to order.
He recalled that there was a gentleman agreement in the association to support whoever becomes the President, even as he acknowledged that the Yorubas have given to Mr Tony Iju Nwabunike as the incumbent President of ANLCA.
He told his host: “We are here on two reasons; first is that since you’ve been given staff of office we have not had the opportunity to come and say hello to you, because we are your subject, because if there is going to be sanity in the country, the traditional rulers know what to do.
“I remember, we once had a meeting where there was a gentleman agreement that when it’s the turn of the Igbos, the Yorubas must support and when it’s the turn of the Yorubas, the Igbos must support.
“To the glory of God, before our president travelled out on course, we the Yorubas that were part of the government made sure we gave him the full support because it is his turn and it could be anybody’s turn tomorrow
“Despite the various crisis that happened in ANLCA we stood by ‘your son’, even when our Yoruba brothers said they should go and lynch us, we were at the secretariat, we stood by your son and we thank God we never regretted it, because we swore to the oath of office to uphold ANLCA constitution, there have been about 11 court cases against this administration and I give it to our president who tried to accommodate everybody, he extended the hand of fellowship to everyone, he set up a committee so that whoever has any grievances can go through that committee, but when somebody hate your guts, the person hate it and there is nothing you can do about that, despite the hand of fellowship the President stretched, some people took that advantage thinking he was a stupid man, he wasn’t a stupid man, he was trying to be the father of all but we thank God, that is now history” he said.
Speaking further the ANLCA President lamented that the in-fighting and disunity in the association has created so many challenges in the industry alleging that the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) is taking advantage of the in-fighting to introduce illegal levies.
He urged the royal father who is also the President Association of Igbo Maritime Practitioners of Nigerian (ASSIMPIN) to call the Igbos causing trouble in ANLCA to order.
“We have mandate from the north, east and west, but we have a few members in the west who are fomenting trouble, but we know that by virtue of your position sir, the few Igbos who are among them, we know you have the power to summon them and let them know that there is need for them to come back home, so that we will have a formidable association.
“We have too many challenges in the port as a result of our in-fighting, NCS have capitalised on this to introduce so many things they just feel like and because of our in-fighting they want the disunity to continue; whether we like it or not. ANLCA is the foremost freight forwarding association in the Industry, it will be better for us if we are formidable, it will be better for our association, we will have sanity in our ports”.
Speaking further, he told his host: “Some people in the association believe that if you don’t dance to my tune, I will give you trouble and they seem to be succeeding, that’s why we say let us run to our leaders who are the spiritual head, sir we want you to call the Igbos among them so that we can have a formidable association.
“We can’t do it alone, when we have infighting, we have too many things we can achieve if allowed to perform, we are open to reconciliation because even the court cases they instituted the judge told them to go back to the association, because section 26 of the ANLCA constitution talks about arbitration, so we are open to reconciliation. “We are here today to solicit for your support so that this association will move forward”.
“I received a divine message, God told me that those disturbing ANLCA, if they don’t change and retrace their step, he said he will remove their fuse and you know when a fuse is removed, it seizes to be relevant, so I am using this opportunity to tell them to come back home or else their fuse will be removed” he said
Responding, Eze Damian Emeka Obianigwe, urged the acting president of ANLCA not to be distracted by those he referred to as Judas in the association, even as he commended the acting president for being a voice against the illegal levies being introduced by the government.
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He said: “My president, if they are not talking about you, that means you are not there yet, talking about you is a sign that you are doing well, because they want to shake you and try you. Farinto you have done well, I am not saying it because you are here, even when Tony Iju was number one, you were doing most of the jobs; we know. I don’t dance on my word, that’s why I am not a politician”.
“On the issue between us and Customs, I believe you will be our only Messiah we are going to have, because you are telling them the bitter truth, forget about the Judas’s, ANLCA will continue to be the number one in our industry, others are feather weights, the heavy weight is ANLCA, so if ANLCA derails, other association will be nowhere,
“I have given a lot of sacrifices on ANLCA and I will not seize to continue to give my support. You have remembered the elders today, God will remember you.
“I am going to do my utmost best with my team to resolve the crisis in ANLCA. I want to see ANLCA return to the unity we used to have before, and we know it will happen in no distance time.
“I am going to call the Yoruba elders and the Igbo elders and every one we need to call, to see that the crisis is resolved” he said.
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