Following the legal battle over the chairmanship tussle that has been lingering for years in the Kwara State branch of the Independent Petrol Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), the court will today, determine the fate of the ex-scribe of the association, Abdulrasheed Olopade and its incumbent chairman, Olarewaju Okanlowon.
The crisis was said to have started in IPMAN since 2013 as a result of the chairmanship election that was contested between the duo.
Okanlowon was accused of violating the IPMAN constitution by deliberately staying in office beyond the stipulated 4 years term.
Speaking on the issue, Olopade, who was an ex-chairman of the association, alleged that Okanlowon stole his mandate through what he described as kangaroo election.
According to him, he won the poll but was not allowed to complete his tenure stressing that Okalawon connived with some power that be in IPMAN to unseat him.
“I defeated Okalawon in that election because our people gave me the mandate to lead them for 4 years. It was a celebrated poll, I came onboard as the chairman, and normal activities were going on in IPMAN. There wouldn’t have been any election before but I needed to complete the tenure of my chairman, Bola Agbolade, who died while in service,”
“Because of some qualities some people saw in me, that I will unearth many anomalies and fight corruption, they don’t want me to continue, so before the expiration of my tenure, it was hijacked,”
“The election we had was a normal one not by-election because, ordinarily, by-election will take place at our association house, the poll was held at Kwara Hotel,”
Along the line, Okanlowon and his supporters claimed that the election I won was by-election, ex-scribe of IPMAN alleges.
“They conducted fresh poll which was held in a kangaroo manner, Okanlowon claimed he won, but was not confidence of it, so, he ran to court to defend the mandate,” Olopade revealed.
The former chairman of IPMAN further stressed that court has delivered a ruling on the matter in 2018 in which the Okanlowon’s suit was described as academics and that it constitute waste of court process.
Okalawon, in his response, denied the allegation leveled against even as he denied any brewing crisis in the association.
He said ” there is no crisis in IPMAN but only the former chairman, Olopade, that is nursing greviances which to me, I don’t know the basis for that, I think the progress of the association should come above all personal interests,”
“When we conducted by-election and he won at that time to complete the tenure of the deceased chairman and after that the election that brought me in was conducted by the zonal executives. But he (Olopade) is contesting it that he was yet to complete his tenure.”
According to him, the claims that he is spending five years instead of four in office was false, stressing that IPMAN constitution has been reviewed.
He said, according to constitution, the IPMAN Chairman’s tenure has been elongated to five years saying his tenure will elapse by January, 2010 and that fresh poll will subsequently be conducted.
He noted that the state chairmanship election will be conducted across various depots such as ijegbo and Mosimi by their zonal representative.
Okanlowon however expressed joy over the judgement that will be delivered in a suit between him and Olopade today saying it will put an end to the crisis rocking the association.