ANLCA Chieftain Calls for Extension of Election Date, Says Chapter Election Should Hold Before NECOM Election

A chieftain of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) at Apapa chapter, Hon Frank Aliako has cautioned the association’s Board of Trustees (BOT) and the Associations Electoral Committee (ASECO) on the need to first conduct chapter elections before going ahead with elections into the National Executive Council (NECOM) of the Association.

He also called for extension of the 31st August 2023 deadline for the elections, saying that it is not feasible. He advised that the election date should be extended by two months.

Aliako, a Task Force Chairman of Apapa Chapter in a chat with DAILY TREND noted that the usual practice in the association according to its supreme constitution, is for chapter elections to hold before NECOM election.

Recall that ANLCA has been in crisis for the past five years, a development which prompted the Federal Government consider prescribing the association.

To this end, the Customs Consultative Committee (CCC) was directed by the Comptroller-General of Customs, Wale Adeniyi to resolve the crisis in the association. The CCC on Thursday has also prescribed to the BOT and ASECO to adopt ‘NEC Mode’ for the coming election.

While reacting to thi development, Aliako said “The Customs Consultative Committee has done a great job of setting the pace for ANLCA election. The onus lies on us now to do the right thing.

“The idea of NEC Mode or AGM should be discarded, let there be a new election of the chapters first because, there are no operating chairmen in each chapter since this problem started.

“Moreso, the chairmen should go to the polls, anybody that wins becomes the chairman of that chapter, from there, we will get the real executives that will vote for the presidency.

“The reason is that, some of the chairmen that were sworn in at the various chapters years ago, their tenures have expired”