8th April, 2019
The Board of Trustees and Patrons of Agbo-Edo Motor Spare Parts Dealers Association (AMSPDA), Nnewi in Anambra has implored the Public Complaints Commission (PCC) to intervene in its election.
The call for intervention was over the brewing crisis in the protracted market election.
The petition submitted to the commission in Awka on Monday was signed by its Chairman, Chief A.U. Ohazulike, the Secretary, Mr Emma Agba and eight others.
The market stakeholders were protesting the date and conditions set by the Anambra Ministry of Trade, Market and Wealth Creation, which they claimed violated the market internal democracy.
The stakeholders said the ministry should be made to abide by the resolutions reached at the PCC after it intervened on the matter on Oct.31, 2018.
The petitioners contended that elective positions which the markets had zoned to Nnewi must be shared according to the zoning formular involving four Nnewi villages.
They said the principle was not respected by the state government as one of the chairmanship candidates was from Umudim village against Otolo village whose turn it was to produce the chairman.
The petitioners urged the PCC to stop the government from setting bad precedence in the conduct of elections in the market as the situation could create chaos in Nnewi as a whole.
“We hereby solicit that you use your good office to direct the State commissioner to ensure compliance with your directive that one of the chairmanship candidates, Mr Dennis Ikegwuonu from Umudim should not contest.
“Because this is in violation of our constitution on sharing formular which states that non-indigenes and indigenes of Nnewi in the market shall share executive positions on 50/50 basis (See Art.7 paragraph 1-3 AMSPDA constitution).
“Going by our micro constitution on sharing in AMSPDA, elective positions must rotate within the four quarters, starting from Otolo, Uruagu, Umudim and Nnewi Ichi (see Art. 7, pg7 Nnewi Progressive Forum constitution).
“We are also contending that the April 12 date as instructed by the state commissioner is not feasible for the electoral committee to reorganise elections of offices in the market.
“We need at least 30 days notice to enable us prepare for the election,” he said.
On their part, the Nnewi Progressive Forum, Agba Edo said the Nnewi rotational principle which had operated for over 25 years should not be violated in the interest of harmony among Nnewi people.
The group cited the recent Nnewi North Constituency election where all political parties fielded candidates from Nnewi-Ichi.
The forum said Otolo, Uruagu and Umudim refused to nominate candidate for any political party in the just concluded general elections because it was the turn of Nnew-Ichi to produce a House of Assembly member for the constituency in accordance with the sharing principle.
Mr Samben Nwosu, the Federal Commissioner in charge of PCC in Anambra acknowledged receipt of the petition and promised to give it the attention it deserved.
The Ministry, in a letter signed by the Commissioner, Dr Christian Madubuko, had directed that AMSPDA election should hold on April 12 at Anedo Social Club Hall, Nnewi.
According to Madubuko, following the expiration of the executive of AMSPDA, it, therefore, becomes necessary that an election is conducted to avail the opportunity to elect their new sets of leadership.
“The election must follow the guideline spelt out in your constitution, you must be aware that it is the state government policy that elections in all markets be conducted under peaceful atmosphere,” he stated.