Recently, the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) took a bold step to end the prolonged leadership crisis that has made a mess of the association’s fortunes, with the emergence of a new president, Sanusi Abdu Fari. Chineme Okafor writes
After years of internal struggles between two factions for the leadership of IPMAN, a new president, Sanusi Abdu Fari, recently emerged to lead the embattled association for the next three years, and out of the mess it has found itself with the leadership struggles.
Fari, who emerged as the next president of the association in a congress that took place in Abuja, would now take over from a former factional president of the association, Chief Lawson Obasi, who for the larger part of his term in office, battled with another factional leader of the association, Elder Chinedu Okoronkwo for control of IPMAN and its authorities.
At the emergence of Fari, Obasi, who handed over to him was said to have successfully completed his three years in office this month, thus paving the way for a fresh congress and the emergence of Fari using existing provisions of the association’s constitution which is reportedly supreme in affairs of leadership succession.
Succession dilemma
Since May 2014, IPMAN had been overwhelmed by factional tussle for its national leadership. Leading the fight, which destabilised the national leadership of the association and its direction, were Okoronkwo and Lawson, who ran parallel regime even with subsisting court suits on the situation.
Allegedly, the troubles for the association started with the refusal of its past president, Aminu Abdulkadir, to hand over to Obasi, who was by the constitution of the association next in the line assume leadership of the association as a deputy to Abdulkadir.
It was then reported that amendments to the constitution of the association was effected without majority approval of same, thus denying Lawson the presidency. A court action by Lawson, which requested the association to revert to status quo was subsequently challenged by the Okoronkwo faction, and then the situation ballooned into the mess that held the association bound to the ground.
Loss of productivity, relevance
For the length of time the association was engulfed in its leadership troubles, its members, who largely provide petroleum products to far-flung parts of Nigeria, could not comfortably operate. They also at a point lost business relationship with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), which refused to deal with any of the factions after several attempts to reconcile them failed.
While the Okoronkwo faction of the association, at a point charged the federal government of impartiality in the internal leadership crisis with its alleged recognition of the Lawson’s faction, and business dealings with it, the NNPC subsequently resorted to individual trade relationships with independent petroleum marketers in the country on the basis of the association’s prolonged leadership crisis.
At the time the corporation took the decision, Okoronkwo told THISDAY that his faction got the notice of NNPC to maintain a neutral stand on the association’s internal quarrel.
He explained then that his faction’s legal counsel, Messrs A.S. Moyosore, got a letter from the NNPC indicating that it was going to respect the many law suits that were pending in court on the same issue, and stay clear of its internal affairs, and would for as long as the crisis lasted, maintain individual trade relationships with IPMAN members.
Emergence of Fari
But in his inaugural speech after his emergence, Fari said he would uphold the constitution of the association and the collective will of all IPMAN members.
He also said his emergence as president had opened a new chapter of unity and progress for IPMAN, adding that the period between 2014 and 2017 were turbulent in the history of IPMAN.
His emergence THISDAY gathered, was shortly after fresh efforts to resolve the crisis was initiated by stakeholders including the NNPC, which recently held meetings with the association and from which it was reported that a truce was reached by the warring factions.
Fari, however, stated in his acceptance of the responsibility: “It is the period we pray never to resurface as IPMAN wax to accomplish its objects. It is my pleasure to state unequivocally with humility that the long awaited and desired peace in IPMAN has finally arrived by my emergence as the national president.”
Noting that his emergence as the new IPMAN president was the desire of all peace-loving marketers, who believe in the 1997 constitution of the association which made provision for seamless succession, Fari stated that the association has retraced its steps and would now take steps to reposition itself.
According to him, the constitution said that, at the end of the tenure of each of the presidents, his vice will automatically succeed him as the new president.
He added that he was the former vice president under Obasi leadership and with the termination of Obasi’s tenure this month, he automatically emerged the new president.
Insiders also told THISDAY that Fari would leverage the existing truce brokered by stakeholders, to reintegrate the Okoronkwo faction, and unify IPMAN. Processes to achieve this, it was learnt, have already begun.
On this also, Chief Adewonyi Kolawole, who represents the South Western Zone of IPMAN, expressed his delight with the emergence of the new president and assured him of support from his zone while his tenure lasted. Kolawole noted that IPMAN in the South Western Zone was united and would in this regard ensure the success of the new move.
Other stakeholders, who spoke to THISDAY on the implications of the development, explained that a united IPMAN would be useful to a seamless petroleum products distribution and supplies in the country.
They noted that most of the private service stations in the hinterlands of the country are owned and operated by members of IPMAN, indicating that for products to get to villages and semi-urban parts of the country, IPMAN would be needed to achieve that.
