The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) chapter of the Ilorin Emirate Descendants Progressive Union (IEDPU) has elected Alhaji Lukman Atanda Abdullah as its new chairman.
Atanda, a member of the Kubwa branch of the IEDP, was given the mandate alongside other official at the union’s quarterly meeting, held recently in Iddo.
At the end of the exercise, the three-member electoral body, led by Alfa Yusuf Ibrahim Aamina, also announced Alhaji Mashood Sulaiman from Gwagwalada branch as the vice chairman.
Also elected were Alhaji Yusuf Adebayo from Anagada branch who emerged the general secretary, Malam Mahruf Onimago (Garki branch) as the financial secretary/treasurer, Malam Abubakar Bello of the Iddo branch as the public relations officer, while Mr. Musa Mukhtar (Mpape branch) was elected auditor.
In his acceptance speech, the new chairman who is also the son of a former and late IEDPU President, Alhaji Abdullahi Atanda, pledged to consolidate on the foundation laid by his predecessor, Alhaji Mashood Al-Kadriyar, whose virtues he extolled for his “fatherly commitment to the unity of all branches in FCT.”
He said: “We appreciate the efforts of Alhaji Mashood Al-Kadriyar for his selfless service to the association. We will continue to unite our branches and work towards the progress of our members.”
On the challenges ahead, the new chairman said: “Alhamdulillahi, we are committed to taking our association to greater heights.”
Speaking to Blueprint on the telephone, Atanda said: “I am not unaware of the enormity of the responsibility ahead of us as a team. For me IEDPU is one union I love, you recall my father(may Allah be pleased with him) was the president of the union at a time. Of course , he left his marks, positive one at that. So, I consider myself lucky to have been so elected among several and highly qualified others.
“I won’t take this opportunity for granted, and in shaa Allah, our team will also make a positive impact in the life of the FCT chapter, with the support of all the members. We have a mandate and this will be creditably discharged while we ensure unity among our members across all branches in the FCT.
“We have a responsibility to ensure Ilorin gets the best from its sons and daughters. We will work in that direction, and with Allah on our side, this will be achieved. And like I said in my inaugural speech, the fatherly role of my predecessor, Alhaji Kadriyar, and others, will be of great value to the new leadership.”