…explains leadership fracas with Leo Ogamba
The new leadership of Shippers Association of Lagos State (SALS), under Princess Fehintola Mulikat as President, has expressed commitment to forge new strategic partnerships with key stakeholders in Nigeria’s maritime sector with a view to addressing the multifaceted problems confronting shippers.
SALS President, Mulikat, stated this during a press briefing in Lagos on Monday, even as she expressed displeasure at the multiple challenges affecting shipping and port business while the association was engulfed in leadership crisis.
According to her, the group will explore collaborations with Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), terminal operators, as well as professional groups like the Chartered Institute of Transport Administration (CIOTA) Nigeria.
Her words: “Some many things have been lingering amid SALS crisis, but is high time to begin collaborations to address the shipping problems. We have been several problems and some agencies are exploiting shippers. How do we create the employment that is expected in the Marine and Blue Economy in an environment that doesn’t support shipping?”
“As a former President of CIOTA Nigeria, I have been privileged to have access to vital information about core areas about Seaport and transportation. There is a need for training for various stakeholders to be on the same page for national interest and growth of shipping”
Meanwhile, the group in a press statement said its change of leadership has nothing to do with the BOT of SALS, Cargo Defence Fund, or Nigeria Shippers’ Council (NSC), as speculated by the media.
“There is no crisis in SALS as the reconciliation team has completed their job and handed over to the 2022 Executive team to direct the affairs of SALS as agreed in the AGM of 07/12/23. The claim by Evangelist Leo Ogamba that he was impeached because he signed an out of court settlement documents on behalf of SALS as a sitting President is baseless because signing the out of court settlement agreement does not confer any special right on him as an individual to appropriate any money to himself.”
The group posited that Shippers’ Council insistence that Ogamba should sign at the time was because he was the sitting President even though SALS presented a member of SALS BOT, Rev. Nichodenmus Odolo to sign the out of Court Setlement agreement, since the Registered Trustees of SALS was party to the case.
The Public Relations Officer of SALS, Mr. Ike Nwagbo, explained that the meeting where the impeachment by unanimous Vote of No Confidence of Evangelist Ogamba took place was a general Imeeting of SALS, duly published, in the usual channel, the Association’s WhatsAppplatform, where Ogamba is an active participant.
“Nigeria Shippers Council has no right to interfere in the internal affairs of SALS as a registered association, therefore, the statement by Evangelist Ogamba that SALS should have waited for the intervention of NSC holds no water.”
The group also posited that Ogamba’s claim that some members of SALS are not Shippers is direct indictment of himself.
“Ogamba made SALS lose the opportunity of having the position of Secretary General of National Shippers Association of Nigeria (NASAN) because he couldn’t submit shipping documents when offered the opportunity to contest for the position of Secretary General of NASAN by the now retired Chief Cajetan C. Agu of Shipper’s Council.”
“He thereafter came back to contest for the office of President of SALS with only one Bill of Lading carrying one used Toyota Sienna. (Copy still in our file).”
The group also accused the former President of SALS, Ogamba of parading with some individuals as SALS members when they were yet-to-be registered with the association.
