A new set of leaders has been elected at the Ladipo Central Executive Auto Dealers Association (LACEADA), the umbrella body of the 43 units in the popular auto market in Lagos.
At the end of the elections held recently at the market, Mr. Jude Chikere Nwankwo was declared the president alongside other candidates who ran for other positions.
Nwankwo, a long-time auto dealer and former vice president of the association, was announced the winner by the chairman of the electoral committee, Mr. Ofoma Arinze Emmanuel, who described the keenly contested polls as “free and fair.”
Other positions for which winners emerged were secretary-general, chief public relations officer and financial secretary.
In his post-election remarks, Nwankwo commended members of the association for turning out in large numbers to ensure the success of the exercise, assuring them that he would deliver on his promise of ushering in peace so that life and property would be better protected in the area.
He said, “In Ladipo, security is paramount and I will make sure it will be intact. To achieve this, I will call all the parties, unit heads and warehouse managers in to a roundtable discussion to move the market forward.”
In his comments, the chairman, board of trustees, Ladipo Market, Mr. Humphrey Chukwuebuka Obiwulu, stated that, “Today, we are ushering in a new executive into the Ladipo market. We are happy the elections went successfully and I believe if Nigeria should borrow a leavf from what we have done, at least, there will be no problem.”
Former president, Comrade Daniel Nwafor, who lauded the elections as very transparent, said Ladipo needed someone on ground to sanitise the system for a change to come to the market.
The incumbent president of LACEADA, Mr. Kingsley Ikechukwu Ogunor, however, explained that the market administration did everything possible to ensure that the elections were successful, saying he was glad it actually turned out to be so.
Drawing from experience, he remarked, “You do not go to leadership position and expect that everything will go smoothly, because we all came from different backgrounds. You don’t expect everyone to conform to what you want. There are areas one needs to use wisdom, areas to be diplomatic and areas to apply force, but ensure everyone is being carried along.”
On his expectations from Nwankwo and his team, Ogunor said, “He has been in the system with me. So, those places I had flaws, he should have learnt from them and be prepared to correct them. Even his opponents that did not win should be reached out to, and brought on board.”