The National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) on Tuesday in Lagos released election guidelines for aspirants vying for its chapter positions in 2018.
Mr Okey Nerus, Chairman NAGAFF Electoral Commission (NECOM), at a news conference to unveil the electoral document, said that members with requisite qualifications should contest.
Nerus said that priority would be given to members with educational qualifications in maritime related studies and those currently undergoing courses in maritime.
He urged members to regularise their registration documents, especially with the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarders Nigeria (CRFFN), to enable them to vote and be voted for.
“The association is a professional body; therefore, every loophole must be blocked to enable credible leaders to emerge in order to keep the body going.
“We want to elect leaders that will be capable of taking the association to the next level and attract goodwill and credence to the association,’’ the electoral chairman said.
Dr Boniface Aniebolam, Founder NAGAFF, said that members should look beyond ethnicity in electing the new leaders.
According to him, the association is a movement meant to correct the lopsided nature of other such professional bodies.
“This association, from its inception 18 years ago, has maintained national outlook and will wish to remain thus in future.
“The idea of voting for somebody in this election because he or she is from my regional zone should not arise as that will go contrary to the tenets of the association,’’ the NAGAFF founder said.
He warned members with clandestine motives to exit the association, adding that there was no room to accommodate such people.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that members with backlog of unpaid CRFFN registration fees were given waiver to pay only for 2017 to enable them to be part of the election.