Associations Reject Kingsley Onyekachi as CRFFN Registrar

…Accuse Oyetola of Abuse of PBY GBOGBOWA GBOWA

Four of the five accredited associations which makes up the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) dragged the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola to court over the recent appointment of Mr. Onyekachi Kingsley as the substantive Registrar of the Council.

The four associations at a joint press briefing held at the national secretariat of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) Lagos, yesterday, Thursday, said the minister failed to abide by the CRFFN guidelines in the appointment of Onyekachi.

 According to the associations namely ANLCA, National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents (NCMDLCA), Association of Registered Freight Forwarders (AREFFN) and National Air Freight Forwarders and Consolidators (NAFFAC), they have approached the court to prove their case of abuse of the  due process and to compel Oyetola to reverse same.

Detailing the sequence of events leading to the controversial appointment, ANLCA President, Mr. Emenike Nwokeoji noted that whereas the registrar position was advertised in 2023, with several applicants shortlisted for interview, he explained that the interview however failed to hold.

He said it was therefore sheer display of executive rascality for the minister to simply wake and make an appointment without recourse to the due process.

“It was advertised, and a lot of people applied. Applicants were shortlisted and scheduled for an interview in Abuja, which they attended. However, the interview did not hold. To our surprise, the person appointed as Registrar was not even among those who applied,” Nwokeoji explained.

“When the announcement was made, we sought clarity but received no satisfactory answers. The process did not follow what the law stipulates for appointing a registrar. Consequently, we decided to seek judicial clarification”, he said.

Further faulting the appointment which he explained questioned the foundation of the CRFFN Act, Nwokeoji said, “Every structure starts with its foundation. If the foundation is weak or faulty, the end product will also be faulty. That is why we are in court—to ensure that the appointment followed the laid-down process. To our understanding, it did not.”

Collaborating, Yinka Bakare, President of NAFFAC, stressed that far from opposing the person of Onyekachi or his affiliation with the National Association of Government-Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), what they are against is the unconstitutionality of his appointment.

“Our concern is not about who was appointed or their background but about the process and procedure of the appointment.

“We are seeking an interpretation of the law to ensure that due process was followed. This is not against any individual or organization but about upholding the integrity of the system.”

While emphasizing their collective resolve to pursue the legal angle to it’s conclusive end to establish the procedural breach in the appointment, they need assured stakeholders that since the matter is in court, they would refrain from further comments to allow the law take its cause.

The associations underscored their commitment to upholding the integrity of the CRFFN and ensuring transparency in the appointment process for key positions within the Council.

While the National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents was represented at the meeting by its President, Ifeanyin Anakwueze, AREFFN was equally represented by its President,

Bala Daura.