The following is the Association's constitution. This is for the benefit of existing and aspiring members. I will make update changes made my members as they occur.
SECTION 1: NAME
The Organisation shall be known as Eke Community Development Association (ECDA) UK & Ireland Branch, and herein called the Association.
SECTION 2: AIM AND OBJECTIVES
1. To promote the spirit of unity among all members and their families.
2. To support and help each other in times of social and welfare needs.
3. To initiate projects that will help bring about the economic, social, and structural development of our hometown Eke, our state Enugu, and our country Nigeria.
When appropriate, to support any good, useful, and reasonable charity activity both in the UK but more especially in Nigeria.
In furtherance of the said objectives, the association shall do all such things that are necessary for the attainment of the said objectives provided that such actions are in accordance with the rules of the association and the laws of the state.
SECTION 3: MEMBERSHIP
Sub Section (a) Becoming a member
1. Membership is open to individuals who are Eke indigenes by birth, marriage, parental origin or by adoption.
2. Those who have resided in Eke for 10 years or above and who adopted Eke as their hometown and accepted its cultural heritage, are also eligible for membership.
3. Aspiring members must be resident in the UK or Ireland and are 18yrs or above.
Sub Section (b) Registration and annual subscriptions
1. Registration is free
2. The annual subscription shall be £50 per member
3. There is no exemption for any member
Sub section © ATTENDING MEETINGS
A member must attend at least a minimum of two meetings in a year
Sub Section (d) Conduct
To achieve those aims and objectives stated in section 2, members of the association shall:
1. Be tolerant and respectful of another member’s opinion, by not being quarrelsome and rude, by not discriminating, and when called upon to help in a crisis, to mediate and create peace and unity.
2. Any member who conducts himself/herself in such a manner as to bring the name of the Association into disrepute, may be suspended if the majority of members recommend such an action.
3. The member will be given the opportunity to defend him/herself in a normal meeting setting.
4. By “disrepute” we mean, defrauding the association, committing fraud with the name of the association, consistently violating the rules of the association, infighting, being abusive, or using threatening language or behaviour.
Sub Section (e) Resignation/removal of a member
An individual ceases to be a member of the association:
1. By submitting a letter of resignation.
2. When the majority of members have voted and adopted a motion for the member to be expelled from the association in line with section 43, sub section (d), number 2.
3. If the member does not attend any of the four meetings in a year and has not paid his or her dues for that year and has failed to contact the association in writing or verbally. A letter shall be written enquiring of their welfare and whether they are still interested in the Associations membership.. If there’s still no contact after this letter has been sent, the member will be deemed no longer a member.
4. By his/her death.
SECTION 4: BENEFITS OF MEMBERSHIP
Sub Section (a) Childbirth
In the event of a member giving birth to a child, the Social/Welfare Officers of the Association shall telephone and then visit the member concerned and give the sum of £25 and a card on our behalf.
Sub Section (b) Marriage
In the event of marriage of a member, the Association shall act as follows:
1. If an invitation was received by the Association, as many members as possible shall attend and play an active part where neccessary. In addition, the Social/Welfare Officers of our association shall give the sum of £100 and a wedding celebration card.
Sub Section (c) Illness
On the incidence of a member being hospitalised for 4 days or more, the Welfare Officers of our Association shall visit the member and give a sum of £20 and a card.
Sub Section (d) Death
1(a) On the death of a member, as many members as possible shall endeavour to visit the bereaved household as soon as possible.
1 (b). All members shall assemble at the bereaved household on an agreed date. This is a condolence visit.
2. (a) The Association shall pay the sum of £2,000 towards the funeral expenses. This will be made payable to the next of kin specified in the pre-signed formal letter specifying the next of kin/beneficiary
2. (b) The Association shall support the bereaved in organising and co-ordinating the wake-keeping arrangements.
3. To achieve this, members shall pay a levy of £50 each towards the cost. The remainder shall be taken from the Associations funds/or put back into the Associations funds
4. On the death of a member’s father, mother, brother, sister, or child, all members shall decide on a specific day for a condolence visit. The sum of £100 will be paid to the bereaved member. The Association shall spend £30 on drinks
Sub Section (e) Qualification for benefits
1. Only members who are not owing the association and who have fully paid up their dues as at the date in which the incident occurred, shall be eligible for benefits.
2. To further qualify for benefits, a member shall attend a minimum of two meetings in a year.
SECTION 5: MEETINGS
Sub Section (a) Hosting, attendance, lateness, notices, and fines
1. The association shall hold meetings once every three months, four times in a year, and on the third week of the month. It shall be on a Saturday or a Sunday or a public holiday that members find convenient. The months are February, May, August, and November.
2. Meetings are to be hosted by individual groups in accordance with the roster. The possibility of finding a permanent venue shall be considered in the future, if the need arises.
3. Members who attend meetings late shall be fined 50 pence. Concessions are allowed. Those residing in places completely outside Greater London, are allowed an hour grace from the time of the commencement of the meeting as stated on the agenda. While those residing within Greater London, are allowed a grace of thirty minutes.
4. A member who fails to attend a meeting without notifying the house and without good reason, shall be liable to a fine of £2.
5. Notices of the quarterly meeting should be sent out to each member of the association four weeks before the meeting is held.
6. Minutes of a previous meeting should be sent to every member of the association with the exception of those who indicated otherwise. This should be sent together with the notices of meeting.
7. Officials of the association who will not attend a meeting, should hand over their up-to-date report (not documents) to a member who will be attending and this should be handed over to the president.
Sub Section (b) Rules of proceedings
1. Quorum: A quorum shall be deemed to have been formed once the members present are half the total number of financially up-to-date members of the association. Any decision taken and adopted at such meetings, shall be binding on all members.
2. On issues that require casting of votes, no member shall exercise more than one vote; but in the case of a draw or tie, the President of the association shall exercise a casting vote.
Sub Section (c) Grouping
1. Our members shall be grouped into categories A,B,C, and D. New members may be added to a group and old members may be swapped.
2. The criteria for grouping shall be twofold. First, is the strength of a group, that is, the number of men and women in a group, and inactivity on the part of some members in attendance and participation. The second is, when there is a reasonable request for change and someone to swap with.
SECTION 6: FINANCE
1. The association shall operate only one bank account.
2. Into this account shall be paid the quarterly dues, fines, and any levies agreed upon.
3. There shall be three authorised signatories to this account, of which a minimum of two signatories will be required for each drawing.
SECTION 7: OFFICERS OF THE ASSOCIATION AND THEIR ELECTION
1. The following designations/offices exist within the association.
PRESIDENT V. PRESIDENT
SECRETARY A. SECRETARY
TREASURER FINANCIAL SECRETARY
PROVOST AUDITOR
WELFARE/SOCIAL/PUBLICITY OFFICERS
2. To serve in any of these positions, a member, first, must be nominated by at least one member and seconded by another, and later elected by a majority of members.
3. A member of the association cannot contest for an elective position unless he or she has been observed to be consistent in the attendance of meetings and had attended the two meetings preceding the present one. In addition, he or she must not be indebted to the association.
4. Each elected official of the association, is to serve and occupy such a position for a period of two years.
Elections, therefore, are to be held every two years.
5. These elected officials shall be known as the Executive Committee of the association.
6. Voting for the nominated candidates shall be by a secret/open ballot system. Votes shall be cast in secret but the votes count must be done in the voters presence, and the result must be announced immediately after the count and in their presence.
SECTION 8: DUTIES OF THE OFFICIALS
Sub Section (a) President
1. The president is the leader of the association and as such, is the overall manager, organiser, co-ordinator of all activities of the association including its meetings.
2. The president must ensure the overall orderly conduct of meetings, charity activities, wake-keeping activities, parties, and any other activities involving the association.
3. The president, as overall supervisor of the association, shall but in a respectable manner, supervise the duties of all other officials and ensure that they are in accordance with the rules of the association and the laws of the state, and done efficiently as well.
V. president
To assist the President in the performance of his/her duties and to act in his/her absence.
Sub Section (b) Secretary
1. The secretary shall record all proceedings and resolutions passed at meetings.
2. The secretary shall send out notices of a forthcoming meeting together with minutes of the preceding meeting to every member of the association, latest, three weeks before the next meeting is held.
3. The secretary shall collect opinions of members about the format of a letter to be sent to other organisations, and then proceed to write, type, and send out such letters on behalf of the association to those associations.
4. The secretary must inform members about letters, invitations, e.t.c., received from other associations through his/her office.
5. The secretary must use second class stamps when posting letters on behalf of the association; only in emergencies or when urgent, should first class stamps be used.
Asst. Secretary
To assist the Secretary in the performance of his/her duties and to act in his/her absence.
Sub Section (c) Treasurer
1. The treasurer shall safely keep the association's funds in a bank account known and approved by members.
2. The treasurer shall pay the association’s funds into the association’s account within 48 hours of it receipt. This is to ensure its safety and enable it earn interest immediately.
3. The treasurer shall keep adequate and correct records of the total income and outgoing on that account and the date.
4. The treasurer must ensure that all approved cheques made out to individuals or organisations, are duly signed for.
5. The treasurer must not issue out a cheque or disburse funds without a clearance letter from the financial secretary.
6. The treasurer must ensure that the amount written on a cheque, is the amount approved by a committee set up by members or by a majority of the members of the association, to be paid to the recipient.
7. The treasurer must ensure that the name on a cheque (the payee), is the payee certified by a committee set up by members or by a majority of the members of the association as the approved recipient of the money.
8. The treasurer should endeavour at all times to make all payments by cheque.
9. The treasurer shall politely assist the auditor in the performance of his/her duty and must not be a hindrance.
Sub Section (d) Financial Secretary
1. The financial secretary shall directly collect dues, levies, donations, and with the assistance of the provost, collect fines (for lateness) for the association.
2. The financial secretary shall keep a detailed record of all money collected and the names of the members from whom the money was received, and the dates of collection.
3. The financial secretary should hand over all moneys collected and entered in the account books to the treasurer for safe keeping within 48 hours of its receipt.
4. The financial secretary shall keep a record of claims of expenditure incurred by an official on official assignment for the association.
5. The financial secretary shall politely assist the auditor in the performance of his/her duty and must not be a hindrance.
6. The financial secretary shall issue a clearance letter to any member making claims and to the social/welfare officers to be submitted to the treasurer before the treasurer can pay the claim or disburse money for benefits.
Sub Section (e) Provost
The provost shall ensure the orderly conduct of members at meetings and collect the levy from members who turn up late for a meeting without acceptable reason.
Sub Section (f) Social/Welfare/Publicity
1. There shall be two officials handling this portfolio; one assists the other.
2. The Social/Welfare/Publicity Officers are responsible for the general social/welfare need of members e.g., organising hospital and childbirth visits, sending cards, buying gifts, as and when necessary.
3. In the absence of a committee, the social/welfare/publicity officers are responsible for the organisation and co-ordination of all other social activities such as those of wake keeping, summer and end of year parties, cooking and buying of drinks, printing of cards, invitation of guests, practise sessions, hiring and arrangement of hall, hiring of disc jockey, e.t.c.
4. When there is a need for publicity or advertisement, it is the duty of these officers to act on behalf of the association on such issues.
5. The Social/Welfare/Publicity Officers should liase with the financial secretary and verify that a potential beneficiary of the association’s gifts or benefits, is not indebted to the association before implementing the rule on benefits.
Sub Section (g) Auditor
1. The auditor shall audit the income and expenditure account of the association twice a year. One should be a mid term audit and the other should be an end of the year audit.
2. The auditor shall send a draft audit to the financial secretary and the treasurer requesting for their comments on his/her findings.
3. The auditor shall present his report to members of the association together with comments from the financial secretary and the treasurer (if any) regarding the association’s financial affairs. This should be done at a quarterly meeting.
4. The auditor shall summit one typed copy of his/her audit report to the secretary for record keeping.
SECTION 9: ABUSE OF OFFICE
All officers of the association ARE bound by all decisions made and adopted by the majority of the members and MUST not violate them. A violation may be punishable by an impeachment or removal from that position but after a committee or members of the association have listened, analysed, and judged the case.
SECTION 10: MODALITIES FOR AMENDMENT
Amendment to the constitution or part of the constitution shall be considered on the following grounds:
1. When a motion for such amendment is moved and seconded by another and then supported by half of the total number of members.
2. On the setting up of a committee to study the motion and if they recommend an amendment.
