Section 5.11: Removal of Officers from Office  

Section 5.17: Tenure of an Interim Officer  

SCHEDULE V - SAVING PROVISIONS  

This constitution is supreme and shall have binding force over all members of Ekiti Associations in North America.

A local chapter or regional association shall be defined as an Ekiti association located in a specific locality anywhere in North America that has at least five members. A local chapter may be focused either on the whole or on a particular section (local government area, district, township, village, etc.) of Ekiti State.

All resolutions, decisions, motions, or actions made by any local chapter association member that are not in compliance with this constitution shall be void, null and of no effect only to the extent that such resolutions, decisions, motions or actions are inconsistent with this constitution.

The Association shall be known as and called EKITI ASSOCIATIONS IN NORTH AMERICA hereinafter referred to as ‘EKAINA’.

  A. EKAINA shall be operating as a non-profit association.

  B. EKAINA shall be non partisan in approach to all Ekiti State issues.

The National Headquarters shall be located in city where the organization is originally registered or incorporated. This would serve as the operational headquarters and nerve center for coordinating all the activities and management of the affairs of the EKITI ASSOCIATION In North America.

The permanent address of EKAINA shall be a post office box at a local post office within the city where the national headquarters is located. The Ekiti local association in that area shall pay the rental fee of the post office box.

Other addresses of EKAINA may be as follows:

(A) The official mailing address of the President’s local association.

(B) The official mailing address of the General Secretary’s local association.

EKAINA shall perform functions that are national in scope only and shall represent the interest of member organizations in dealing with State and National bodies both in North America and Nigeria. All powers and functions not specified in this Constitution shall be vested in member associations. All local and regional associations shall continue to retain their identity.

1.   To cherish, uphold and project the honor and dignity of Ekiti culture, language and tradition worldwide.

2.   To serve as an umbrella organization to other Ekiti local or regional organizations in North America.

3.  To encourage and deliberate on issues paramount to the Ekiti people.

4.  To foster the economic empowerment of Ekiti state and Ekiti indigenes in Nigeria and in North America.

5.  To undertake specific projects beneficial to Ekiti state and aimed at enhancing her development and growth.

6.  To work with other Ekiti organizations inside and outside Nigeria to promote peace, stability, and unity of purpose for Ekiti State interests.

7.  To engage such activities anywhere in North America, that promote and ensure unity, social justice, equality, opportunities and interests of Ekiti State.

8.  To work diligently towards bridging the information gap between the Ekiti State and the world.

9.  To establish a newsletter "EKITI VOICE IN NORTH AMERICA" the organ of Ekiti for information dissemination within Nigeria and the Ekiti people in North America.

10.To establish a presence in Nigeria that facilitates home-based ethical and legal activities.

11. To ensure the advancement of Ekiti traditional institutions.

12. To promote and maintain unity of purposes and actions among all Ekiti indigenes and Ekiti associations in North America.

13. To promote and sustain ekiti cultural heritage through educational and socio-cultural programs.

14. To create and maintain a forum for effective dissemination and exchange of genuine information about Ekiti State, among EKAINA members on one hand, and between EKAINA and Ekiti State Government on the other hand.

15. To support, stimulate and promote genuine economic and industrial investments in Ekiti State through individual, collective and collaborative efforts.

16. To contribute to the development of quality education in Ekiti State.

17. To play the role of a responsible, patriotic, unbiased and objective watchdog on the activities of the Ekiti State Government.

18. To organize and hold annual convention of Ekiti indigenes in North America at locations determined by the executive council.

19. To recognize and honor some worthy Ekiti indigenes at the EKAINA convention, based on criteria set out by the National Executive Council.

ARTICLE III - MEMBERSHIP

Qualification as an association member into EKAINA shall be by being a local chapter in accordance with section 1.02 of this constitution. Association membership shall be obtained by completing the application for membership in accordance with section 3.03 of this constitution.. 

An Ekiti indigene who lives in a locality anywhere in North America that has no local chapter of any Ekiti association can obtain membership in EKAINA. He or she can obtain membership through either affiliation with a local EKAINA chapter nearest to his or her place of residence or by registering directly as "individual" member. Individual membership shall be obtained by completing the application for membership as specified in section 3.03 of this article.

A local chapter/regional association or individual person may apply for membership into EKAINA by doing the following:

(a) Filling in the membership application form(s) completely.

(b) Payment of the required application fees.

It is the duty of the National Executive Committee, to determine who qualifies as a member by approving or disapproving application for membership based on verification of facts as contained in such application.

3.05: REFUND OF APPLICATION FEE:  

An individual member who register to become a member of a local chapter within a year of becoming an EKAINA member shall get a full refund of his or her application fee.

I. Executive Officers: The following shall be the executive officers of EKAINA and the offices shall be open for election at the National Convention.

1. President

2. Vice President

3. General Secretary

4. Secretary of Treasury

5. Financial Secretary

6. Secretary of Legal Affairs or Public Relation Officer (PRO)

7. Secretary of Public Affairs

The above named elected officers shall made up the members of EKAINA Executive Committee (EEC)

II. National Executive Council (NEC): The National Executive Council is the largest policy body of the organization. The National Executive Council shall consist of all local associations Presidents, General Secretaries, and all EKAINA elected executive officers.

The National Executive Council shall coordinate all the activities of EKAINA. They shall also evaluate all new chapters applying for membership to the National Association. Chapters represented at the National Executive Council should have met all their financial obligations to EKAINA. The National Executive Council shall designate an individual to fill offices that become vacant in-between election periods.

The President shall be the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the organization. He or she shall preside over all national conventions, proceedings and meetings of the executive council. The president shall represent the National Association in all official matters. The president shall present the presidential address at the annual National Convention in which he/she would detail a plan or course of action for the coming year and provide needed direction and guidance for the organization. The president, on the recommendation of the National Executive Council, shall make appointments of standing committees. The president shall have the power to set up ad hoc committees. The president shall be responsible for promoting the progress of the organization

The vice president would be a member of the National Executive Council. The Vice President shall assist the President to coordinate and supervise all organization activities. The Vice President shall work with the executive General Secretary, Financial Secretary, Secretary of Treasury, Secretary of Public Affairs and Secretary of Legal Affairs to ensure full compliance with all the affairs of the organization. If the President is unable to perform the duties of the office, the National Executive Council shall meet to approve the Vice President to perform the duties of the office until an election is held. Should the Vice President resign or is removed, the National Executive Council shall meet to appoint an interim Vice President to complete the term of the departed Vice President.

The General Secretary is the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the organization. The General Secretary, in consultation with the President, shall manage the day to day correspondents of the organization. The chief operating officer, in consultation with the president, shall coordinate all activities of the organization. He or she shall work with the President and the National Executive Council to ensure that the goals and objectives of the organization are carried out. The General Secretary shall provide an annual report to the National Executive Council at the annual NEC meetings or when demanded or requested by the National Executive Council. The General Secretary shall work closely with the Vice President to ensure that local chapters are fully informed on all activities and pronouncements of the National Association. The General Secretary shall be responsible for the production of minutes of all National Executive Council meetings and National Conventions.

The Secretary of Treasury is the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the National Association. The Secretary of Treasury shall coordinate and manage all financial affairs of the organization, prepare annual budget, provide year to date quarterly financial reports on the status of and on going financial activities of the organization. The Secretary of the Treasury shall provide a quarterly financial statement on the financial activities of the organization. The President, General Secretary and the Secretary of Treasury shall be principal signatories for the organization. The National Convention shall appoint the auditor upon recommendation of the National Executive Council (NEC).

The Financial Secretary shall oversee the collection and recording of all moneys collected by the National Association and shall work closely with the Secretary of Treasury, Vice President and the General Secretary. The Financial Secretary shall hand-over all moneys to the Secretary of Treasury for deposit within five (5) working days after collection.

The Secretary of Legal Affairs shall be the principal Legal Officer of the organization. The Secretary of Legal Affairs shall be responsible for over-seeing all contracts, agreements, and legally binding matters pertaining to the EKAINA. The Secretary of Legal Affairs shall provide legal advice to the National Executive Council and elected officers on the legality of pronouncements involving the EKAINA.

The Secretary of Public Affairs, also to be known as "Public Relation Officer" shall be the mouth-piece of the organization, and would ensure that all activities and pronouncements of the organization are communicated to members of the organization and the public as may be required. The Secretary of Public Affairs should also establish significant contact with members of the media in Nigeria and in North America to enable the dissemination of information and press releases concerning EKAINA activities. The Secretary of Public Affairs, in consultation with the president, shall organize news conferences and public statements on behalf of the organization. The Secretary of Public Affairs shall be the Editor in Chief of the National Association’s newsletter, "EKITI VOICE IN NORTH AMERICA".

The fiscal year of the Union shall be from September 1^st of one year to August 31^st of the following year.

All national executive positions shall be contested every two years at the National Convention.

Eligibility for any EKAINA office shall be as follows:

(a)  Be an active registered member of a local chapter.

(b)  Be qualified to be elected into office at the local chapter.

(c)  Be part of a local chapter’s delegate to the EKAINA convention.

(d)  All nominee must have fulfilled his or her financial, ethical and moral obligations to their local chapter association at the time of election.

(e)  Individual member shall not be eligible to run for any of the executive offices of EKAINA.

(f)   No member shall run or be voted to an EKAINA office in absentia

Eligibility for voting shall be by being a current active registered voting member of a local chapter or a qualified registered individual member

Each association shall be assigned electoral votes based on actual number of members registered as qualified to vote at the local election at the beginning of EKAINA fiscal year in. Delegates to the convention shall have the option of voting their association’s allotted electoral votes either in part or as a whole. There shall be no fractional vote allowed at the convention.

5.06 NOMINATION AND ELECTION PROCEDURE I. Pre-Convention Nomination: The following shall be the procedure governing the nomination of candidates for all EKAINA’ executive offices:

   (a) Three months before the convention, the EKAINA Executive Committee (EEC) shall ask each member association to provide, within 30 days, a list showing the names and the qualifications of their candidates for the executive officers positions. Each association can submit only a single nominee for any of the offices. A person can be nominated for more than one position.

   (b) The lists shall be compiled by the EEC and be distributed to all member associations. It shall also be announced and posted publicly at a place such as the EKAINA’s EKITIPEOPLESVOICE yahoo groups' website.

  (c) Each association shall be required to choose, within 30 days, a maximum of 3 candidates for each office and in order of priority (1^st choice = 3 points; second choice = 2 points and third choice = 1 point).

  (d) At the end of the 30 days period, the EEC shall tabulate the votes. The two nominees with the highest points shall be declared the candidates for each position.

(e) If there is a tie, a telephone runoff shall be conducted between only the tied nominees to choose a winner.

  (f) The EEC will announce the two nominees for each position and declared them the only eligible candidates to be voted for at the convention. In case there is a single nominee for an office, such nominee shall be voted in un-opposed.

II. Election at the Convention: The following shall be the procedure governing the conduction of an EKAINA election.A returning officer, who may not necessarily be a delegate, but an Ekiti indigene, shall be appointed by the incumbent president or by the presiding person.

(a) The returning officer shall be assisted by up to five other non-candidate delegates from different chapters and/or individual members.

(b) The returning officer shall announce the names of the two candidates for each various offices.

(c.) Each candidate shall be required to give pre-election speech of not more than two minutes long.

(d) Delegates from each member associations shall be entitled to use their association’s allotted electoral vote in part or in full.

(e) Individual member delegates shall be entitled to use only a single electoral vote.

(f) Voting shall be by secret ballot.

(g) The returning officer and his/her assistants shall tally the vote immediately after the voting is completed.

(i) The candidate with a simple majority of the total vote cast for each office shall be declared the winner of that office.

(j) In the event there is tie between the two candidates, the returning officer shall toss a coin to determine the winner.

Before assuming office, all elected officers shall subscribe to the oath of office contained in schedule II to this constitution. The oath shall be given within the first week of the month of September following the election of the officer. The oath of office shall be given in person or on a telephone conference call meeting of the NEC.

The presiding officer or any other person duly appointed by NEC shall administer the oath of office on the President. The President shall administer the oath of office on all other executive members excluding self.

Every elected officer of the EKAINA shall serve, subject to good behavior, for a period of two fiscal years.

The starting point for the tenure of an officer elected at the convention shall be at the beginning of the fiscal year following the election.

An officer may be removed based on any or all of the following:

(i)     Abuse of office. This includes, but is not limited to, intentional violation of the provisions of this constitution.

(ii)   Embezzlement and misappropriation of Association’s funds and properties.

(iii)  Gross misconduct or indiscipline.

(iv)  Conviction for commission of a felony in a competent court of law.

(v)    Breach of the oath of office.

(vi) At the written notice from the officer's local association giving reason(s) for such removal.

Following shall be the procedure for removing an elected officer.

(a) An allegation in writing, by at least one member association, shall be presented to the NEC

(b) The allegation shall set out the specific grounds upon which the removal is sought.

(c) The officer shall be given from seven (7) to thirty (30) days to respond to the allegation.

(d) An ad-hoc committee, comprising of at least Presidents of 3 local associations, shall be set up by the NEC to investigate the allegation.

(e) The committee shall be given a period not exceeding sixty (60) days to submit its findings and recommendations to the Association.

(f) The committee’s report shall be presented to the NEC in a meeting, and the meeting shall briefly deliberate on the report before voting on the recommendations.

(g) A two-third votes of members present and voting, provided quorum is formed, shall be required to affirm, vary or quash the recommendations.

An outgoing officer shall surrender all EKAINA’s property in his possession to the new officer of the same office. The transfer of property shall take place not longer than 30 days after the vacation of office.

EKAINA shall do all that are permitted by this constitution and applicable federal and/or state law to retrieve her property not surrendered by an officer who has vacated his seat either on account of removal, resignation, or upon expiration of his term of office.

A vacancy may occur based on any of the following reasons:

(i)     Removal

(ii)    Resignation

(iii)   Inability to perform duties of the office due to illness, long absence, suspension, and similar causes.

(iv)   Unfilled position in a general election

5:16 FILLING AN INTERIM VACANCY

Subject to any contrary provisions of this constitution, any vacancy may be filled by a qualified NEC member with a simple majority votes of NEC members present and voting, provided a quorum is formed.

A person elected pursuant to this section shall only serve for the unexpired period of the vacating officer.

The types of meetings of the EKAINA shall be:

1. NATIONAL CONVENTION

2. NATIONAL EXECUTIVE COUNCIL

3. EKAINA EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

4. STANDING COMMITTEE

5. AD-HOC COMMITTEE

The quorum for meetings shall be as follows:

1.  NATIONAL CONVENTION: Quorum shall be formed by having representatives (delegates) from at least half of the member organizations present.

2. NATIONAL EXECUTIVE COUNCIL: Quorum shall be formed by having the President or the presiding officer, the General Secretary and at least other Executive Council members from at least four (4) local chapters present.

3. EKAINA EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE: Quorum shall be formed by having the President or the presiding officer, the General Secretary and at least two other Executive officers present.

1. The National Convention shall be held annually. The location, time and duration shall be as determined at the national Convention based on recommendation by the NEC.

2. Meeting of the NEC shall be held at least twice (2) a year, or as frequently as deemed necessary by the Executive Board of Officers. Meeting of NEC can be by members being physically present or by telephone/online conference.

3. Meeting of the EEC shall be held at least every quarter (four times a year) or as frequently as deemed necessary by the President. Meeting of EEC can be by

members being physically present or by telephone/online conference.

4. The Standing Committees and Ad Hoc Committee meeting frequencies shall be as determined by the Chairpersons of each Committee in consultation with

all committee members. Standing Committee Meetings can be by members being physically present or by telephone/online conference.

The notice of NEC meetings shall be prepared and distributed at least thirty (30) before the set date by the General Secretary. Emergency meetings shall be called through any means of communication. Notice of National Convention meetings shall be announced at least one hundred and twenty (120) days prior to the convention. Notice of all other Committee meetings shall be announced at least fifteen (15) days before the meeting.

1. The minutes of meetings shall include:

(a) The dates, time, and place of meeting.

(b) Members present

(c) The adopted agenda.

(d) The decisions made in the form of consensus, motions and subsequent voting results.

2. The minutes of the last meeting shall be made available to each region prior to the next meeting

3. The minutes shall be corrected and adopted as soon as the meeting is called to order and the quorum is formed.

4. The adopted minutes shall be filed as a permanent record of the meeting.

The standing committee of EKAINA shall be as follows:

 1.  EDUCATION

 2.  HEALTH

 3.  ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

 4.  FUND RAISING

 5.  POLITICAL AFFAIRS AND LEADERSHIP

 6.  INTERNAL AND STRATEGIC PLANNING

 7.  FINANCE/BUDGET

 8.  AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT

 9.  HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

10. SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

The appointments to the Standing Committees shall be made by the National Executive Council (NEC). Membership on each committee shall be based on the member’s qualifications as well as professional experience and expertise in the specialty of the committee. Each committee shall have representation from not less than three chapters and shall be headed by the chairperson appointed by the committee. Committees would be charged with the responsibility of making recommendations and policy proposals on issues pertaining to the expertise of the committee. Committees shall also be required to present reports at the annual conventions, and submit proposals on policy prescription to the NEC. Each committee shall consist of at least five (5) members.

The source of finance by the EKAINA shall be as follows:

1. Application Fee: All membership applicants shall be required to pay a non-refundable application fee. The amount for application fee shall be reviewable and be set by the NEC.

2. Annual Dues: Every member shall pay a non-refundable annual due each year. The amount for annual dues shall be reviewable and be set by the NEC. There shall be two types of annual dues to be set follows:

    (a) Local Chapter dues: Chapter dues shall be set for each member in all local associations. Chapter dues shall comprised of a minimal set amount plus

addition based on number of registered member on their roster at the beginning of each fiscal year. The number of registered members specified above shall

also be used to determine the electoral voting strength of each local chapter as required elsewhere in this constitution.

    (b) Individual Member dues: Individual dues shall be set for every individual member.

3. Donations and Grants: EKAINA may receive and accept donations and grant from members and non-members.

4. Fund Raising Activity: EKAINA may, by a vote of a simple majority of NEC members, undertake fund raising activities at any time.

Member’s financial obligations shall include, but not limited to annual dues, fees, special levy and all others as may be approved by the NEC. It shall be the duty of all members to discharge their financial obligations fully and promptly.

Membership shall be suspended or members expelled from the EKAINA for failure to meet financial obligations. The nature shall be determined by NEC.

EKAINA shall maintain at the least, a checking account with a reputable financial institution that has a branch office in most metropolitan cities in North America. All EKAINA bank accounts shall henceforth be referred to as "ACCOUNTS" under this article.

The signatories to the account(s) for withdrawal of fund shall be:

(a) The President

(b) The General Secretary, and

(c) The Financial Secretary.

The signatories to the accounts for deposit of fund shall be:

(a) The Secretary of Treasury

(b) The General Scretary, and

(c) The President

The signatures of any two officers mentioned under "Signatories for fund withdrawals from account(s)" above shall be required to withdraw funds from the account(s).

A signature of any one of the officers mentioned under "Signatories for fund deposits to account(s)" above shall be required to deposit funds into the account(s).

Except in an emergency situation, all withdrawals from the Union’s accounts must be authorized by the NEC.

In an emergency situation, a sum not exceeding $1000 may be withdrawn at the behest of the president. The president shall seek and get the approval of the majority of EEC members before making additional needed withdrawals without first getting the approval of NEC.

Withdrawals shall be defined as any of the following:

(a) In person bank withdrawals

(b) Signing of account(s) checks

(c) Appropriating cash received on behalf of the EKAINA for any purpose other than the deposit thereof to the account(s).

This Constitution may only be amendment by using the following procedures:

(a) A proposal for amendment may be initiated by a local chapter member or by an individual member.

(b) The proposed amendment shall be formally announced and a copy distributed to all members to solicit comments. There will be a 60-day period to allow members to send in comments. After the 60-day review period, the NEC shall meet to go over the comments and deliberate on the merit of the proposed

amendment.

(c) A vote of not less than two-thirds (2/3) of members of the NEC shall be required to effect the amendment.

1. Ekiti Progressive Union, North Texas, USA

 

2. Ekitikete Association of Chicago, Chicago Illinois, USA

3. Ekitikete Club of Canada, Ontario, Canada.

 

4. Ekitiparapo Association of New York, New York, USA

5. Ekiti Association of Houston, Houston Texas, USA

1. Mr. Matthew Asaolu, (Chairman) Ekiti Progressive Union, North Texas, USA

Signature_______________________________                  Date: _________

2. Mr. Olusanya Kakaki Ibitoye, (General Secretary) Ekitikete Association of Chicago, Chicago Illinois, USA

Signature_______________________________ 

Date: _________

Signature_______________________________                 Date: _________

4.   Mr. Moses ‘Dele Fagbeyiro, President, Ekiti Progressive Union, North Texas, USA

Signature_______________________________           Date: _________

Signature_______________________________          Date: _________

6. Mr. Clement Olakanmi, President, Ekitikete Canada, Toronto Canada

Signature_______________________________         Date: _________

7. Dr. Muyiwa Arowosafe, (Public Relation Officer), President, Ekiti Association in Houston

SAVING PROVISIONS

 

1. Notwithstanding any contrary provisions of this constitution, the first election of officers of this Association shall be held after this constitution has been adopted by at least two-third (2/3) majority member associations.

 

2. Without regard to Article IX, the Constitution Drafting Committee, whose members are listed in Schedule IV to this constitution, is hereby empowered to amend any error in this constitution, typographical or otherwise, which may not be discoverable at the time of adopting this constitution.

 

3. The Constitution Drafting Committee is hereby authorized to monitor the implementation of this constitution for the first one (1) year following its adoption and come up, before or at the expiration of the one-year monitoring period, with an affirmative report of the necessity of adding, removing, or supplementing any or every provision of this constitution.

 

4. If any amendment is made to this constitution, either pursuant to Schedule III or Article IX to this constitution, the President and the Secretary General shall cause the amended copies to be printed and distributed to all members with or without charge.

 

5. The Association shall pass a motion at the convention, following the adoption of this constitution, the appointment of the Constitution Drafting Committee as an ad- hoc committee whose main duties shall be as specified in this Schedule and such other duties as the Association may assign to it.