Two factions of the Nigeria Hotel Association (NHA) have emerged following a leadership tussle rocking the association in Imo.
The National Executive Council of the NHA in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr Yakubu Yusuf, on Monday, dissolved an interim management committee of the association led by Chief Stanley Ohiri.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that following a leadership tussle in the Imo chapter of the association, Ohiri emerged as Interim Management Committee Chairman, while Mr Sam Okoli was appointed as interim secretary, on July 7.
Ohiri had said that the leadership change became necessary following the successful expiration of the tenure of the state’s executive committee led by Acting Chairman, Eze Josephat Nwosu.
In a swift turn of events however, the association’s national executive, rising from an emergency meeting, nullified the adoption of a new constitution and the formation of the seven-man interim management committee by its Imo chapter.
Yusuf reaffirmed Nwosu as Acting Chairman of the NHA in Imo, and the only person recognised by its national secretariat to oversee the affairs of the chapter pending a constitutionally compliant election.
“The national secretariat, through the office of the National Secretary will, in due course, announce the timeline and guidelines for a fresh election in line with the national constitution.
“All government and external engagements relating to the NHA in Imo must henceforth be channeled through the duly recognised Acting Chairman and the national secretariat ”, he said.
Reacting, Nwosu hailed the national secretariat for “insisting on the rule of law” as enshrined in its constitution rather than a set of bye-laws unknown to the association, upon which the Ohiri-led committee was allegedly formed.
Ohiri however frowned at Nwosu’s failure to conduct an election for the emergence of a substantive chairman many months after he took from erstwhile chairman, Mr Chima Chukwunyere, to complete the latter’s term.
He cited Article 10 of the NHA Constitution which gives state chapters of the association the powers to hold their elections and other internal activities without interference from the national leadership.
He therefore called on the association’s national secretariat to stay off its activities in the state, while calling for unity and assuring that in line with the association’s constitution, he would conduct an election within six months.
When contacted, Chukwunyere said that the constitution of the Ohiri – led committee was borne out of members’ loss of trust in Nwosu, whom they accused of a lack of accountability and refusal to conduct an election.