The All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), South West Zone, has called for reversal of the Caretaker Committee sworn in by the Chairman, Board of Trustees (BoT) of the Association, Admiral Murtala Nyako.
Chairman of AFAN Lagos State and the South West Zone, Dr. Femi Oke, who made the disclosure in a conference in Lagos, recently, said the inauguration of the Caretaker Committee followed the illegal dissolution of its duly elected national executives by Nyako.
Expressing disappointment over the inauguration, which they alleged was done in Nyako’s living room as captured in a video that had gone viral, Oke said the action, which was unconstitutional, was taken without consulting the stakeholders possibly because some elected chairmen and members levelled unsubstantiated allegations against them.
“With utmost dismay, we received news, through the social media, of the dissolution of duly elected national and state officers of our able association, AFAN, by our BoT Chairman, Admiral Murtala Nyako. We believe it is our internal issue that can be resolved for failure to conduct an election as and when due in 2019. The fact that there were four states – Edo, Ebonyi, Kaduna and Ogun – left that had not conducted their elections, should not have warranted dissolution of duly elected officers to enthrone an illegal committee.
“The electorate for the national election evolve from the states’ elections and comprise the elected chairman, secretary, treasurer, women leader and elected youth leader as specified by the constitution.”
Oke, who admitted failure to conduct an election as and when due in June 2019, noted that already there were moves by the National Working Committee (NWC), which held a meeting in Abuja. He said about 36 states had already conducted their elections, with only five states remaining due to none payments of election fee to the national body.
He said, “in view of this, members sworn in by the BoT chairman unilaterally did it alone without consultation of other BoT members, Senator Abdullah Adamu and Shettimah Mustafa,” adding that none of the stakeholders were carried along except members that were expelled and non-performing members.
The association appealed to the BoT chairman to reverse his decision and embrace other BoT members and stakeholders in AFAN. This, he said, will allow everyone enjoy the agricultural agenda of this administration.