AS RIFT BETWEEN NSC, NFF DEGENRATES Any end in sight?
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- Category: Sports
- Written by David Ngobua
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As it is common knowledge, the genesis of the ongoing crisis is the controversies which characterized the elections that brought into office the present leadership of the Nigeria Football Federation.
It was widely believed that Ekeji did not support the emergence of Maigari as the next substantive president of the Nigeria Football Federation.
Consequently, when Harrison Jalla and his association of Nigerian footballers headed to court to challenge the eligibility of the election that brought Maigari into power, many concluded that Ekeji was the chief instigator.
However, things got out of hand when a group led by Jarret Tenebe and former Gombe State FA Chairman. Alhaji Shaibu Gara-Gombe emerged with a new NFA with the aim of taking over the running of football in the country on the grounds that the laws of the country do not recognize the existing NFF.
To rub salt into NFF’s wounds, Ekeji later addressed a press conference where he declared his intention to seek FIFA’s intervention over the issue of the parallel football body but was quick to add that the issues raised by the Tenebe group were too serious to be swept under the carpet.
He said: “Call it a faceless group or not, once a petition is written, it must be investigated. It is only when there is no truth in it that it can be laid to rest. Therefore the petition that the parallel body wrote touched on issues that need to be addressed. There are certain actions that need to be taken. NSC is a neutral arbiter and will take the issue to FIFA”.
For many, Ekeji’sposition amounted to tacit endorsement of the group which is believed by many to be enjoying government patronage.
Penultimate week, it was alleged that in attempt to save his board, Maigari, through former minister of sports, Alhaji Ismaila Sambawa, sought to have audience with President Goodluck Jonathan and his mission was to convince the President to order for the immediate removal of Dr. Ekeji as the D-G of NSC.
It is said on getting wind of the subtle moves by the NFF president to get him kicked out of office, the D-G quickly set in motion a team to mobilize members of the NFF congress for possible impeachment of the NFF Executive Committee leadership.
Informed sources said it was for this purpose that Ekeji directed the NFF to convey an emergency congress which on the surface was meant to bring together relevant stakeholders to deliberate and find lasting solutions to the crises bedeviling Nigerian football.
In order not to be caught napping, it is said the NFF in return wrote back to the NSC explaining why it would not call for the congress as directed. The NFF argued that it was not aware of any crisis in Nigerian football and that it reserves to right to decide when to call for a congress.
When it became obvious that the NFF had bluntly refused to bend backward, NSC then called for a parley for other stakeholders like past chairmen/presidents and past scribes of NFA/NFF to come together for further deliberations.
The Executive Committee of NFF on Wednesday honoured Ekeji’s proposed parley. It was at the venue of the seemingly harmless parley which had in attendance three former scribes of the then NFA, Alhaji Mahmud Kadiri, Hon. Ahmed Sani Toro and Coach Fanny Amun that the accumulated anger of the gladiators exploded.
The interaction started on a heated note as chairman of the technical committee of NFF, Barrister Chris Green who spoke on behalf of his colleagues kicked against the composition of the peace finding assembly.
He said even if the likes of Kadiri, Toro and Amun were to be part of the meeting, those he believed had no business being in the meeting should be asked to leave, if the parely was to hold. In addition, he alleged that there was a conspiracy on the part of Ekeji to undermine members of the NFF Executive Committee.
Despite the position of Green, Ekeji went ahead to explain the importance of the parley and expressed hope that in the end lasting solutions would be found. He, therefore, asked the NFF President to make further comments, if he had any.
However, before Maigari could say a word, Green again got to his feet and took on Ekeji head on this time.
“We never knew this was going to be a world press conference where we would be sandwiched by people that are not members of the football federation or members of the football family. If that is the case, it means what you said we are here to find solutions to the problems, loopholes are in there.
“We can only rub minds with some of our senior colleagues as well as ourselves to find the way forward. If there are issues, we would resolve them as amicably as we can. That is our position”.
The moment he sat down, his colleague, Barrister Olaleye Adepoju took the floor as he hit the nail on the head accusing Ekeji of bringing the committee members together to dish out a hand note to them.
“The type of people we have here shows that we have been brought here to have a hand out by the government. We have seen some of our senior colleagues and by virtue of their positions; we can consult them without you being involved.
“Your perception about this meeting is different from ours and I wonder how we would come to the middle. We are here to take instructions; we are here to rub minds, where is the level playing ground? he asked rhetorically.
Based Green and Adepoju’s position which found support in their colleagues, Ekeji asked journalists and other people including Barrister Dudu Orumen, former member of the NFA technical committee to leave.
Thereafter the NSC D-G also left for the meeting to continue. The ex-NFA scribes and members of the committee had over three hours closed door meeting.
In the end, Toro told journalists that what took place that day was phase one of the reconciliation efforts. He said the second phase would target other aggrieved parties like Chief Segun Odegbami and Jarret Tenebe. He expressed confidence that recommendations to be forwarded to the NSC would go a long way in resolving the crisis.
Despite his optimism, those who saw the countenance of Ekeji and his aides while the ‘attack’ on him by the two NFF executive committee members lasted, will know that the battle is far from over.
Now, the big question is, with the coming on board of the three wise men- Kadiri, Toro and Amun, is an end to the lingering crisis in sight? More events which will unfold next week would determine the fate of Nigerian football. For now, it is uneasy calm that is in the air.
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AS RIFT BETWEEN NSC, NFF DEGENRATES Any end in sight?
Category: Sports Written by David Ngobua Hits: 595
To say the relationship between the National Sports Commission, NSC, under the leadership of Chief Patrick Ekeji and the executive committee of the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, led by Alhaji Aminu Maigari is strained to a breaking point is an understatement. What presently exists between NFF and its supervisory authority is a cold war that is dangerously threatening the continued existence of the game.As it is common knowledge, the genesis of the ongoing crisis is the controversies which characterized the elections that brought into office the present leadership of the Nigeria Football Federation.
It was widely believed that Ekeji did not support the emergence of Maigari as the next substantive president of the Nigeria Football Federation.
Consequently, when Harrison Jalla and his association of Nigerian footballers headed to court to challenge the eligibility of the election that brought Maigari into power, many concluded that Ekeji was the chief instigator.
However, things got out of hand when a group led by Jarret Tenebe and former Gombe State FA Chairman. Alhaji Shaibu Gara-Gombe emerged with a new NFA with the aim of taking over the running of football in the country on the grounds that the laws of the country do not recognize the existing NFF.
To rub salt into NFF’s wounds, Ekeji later addressed a press conference where he declared his intention to seek FIFA’s intervention over the issue of the parallel football body but was quick to add that the issues raised by the Tenebe group were too serious to be swept under the carpet.
He said: “Call it a faceless group or not, once a petition is written, it must be investigated. It is only when there is no truth in it that it can be laid to rest. Therefore the petition that the parallel body wrote touched on issues that need to be addressed. There are certain actions that need to be taken. NSC is a neutral arbiter and will take the issue to FIFA”.
For many, Ekeji’sposition amounted to tacit endorsement of the group which is believed by many to be enjoying government patronage.
Penultimate week, it was alleged that in attempt to save his board, Maigari, through former minister of sports, Alhaji Ismaila Sambawa, sought to have audience with President Goodluck Jonathan and his mission was to convince the President to order for the immediate removal of Dr. Ekeji as the D-G of NSC.
It is said on getting wind of the subtle moves by the NFF president to get him kicked out of office, the D-G quickly set in motion a team to mobilize members of the NFF congress for possible impeachment of the NFF Executive Committee leadership.
Informed sources said it was for this purpose that Ekeji directed the NFF to convey an emergency congress which on the surface was meant to bring together relevant stakeholders to deliberate and find lasting solutions to the crises bedeviling Nigerian football.
In order not to be caught napping, it is said the NFF in return wrote back to the NSC explaining why it would not call for the congress as directed. The NFF argued that it was not aware of any crisis in Nigerian football and that it reserves to right to decide when to call for a congress.
When it became obvious that the NFF had bluntly refused to bend backward, NSC then called for a parley for other stakeholders like past chairmen/presidents and past scribes of NFA/NFF to come together for further deliberations.
The Executive Committee of NFF on Wednesday honoured Ekeji’s proposed parley. It was at the venue of the seemingly harmless parley which had in attendance three former scribes of the then NFA, Alhaji Mahmud Kadiri, Hon. Ahmed Sani Toro and Coach Fanny Amun that the accumulated anger of the gladiators exploded.
The interaction started on a heated note as chairman of the technical committee of NFF, Barrister Chris Green who spoke on behalf of his colleagues kicked against the composition of the peace finding assembly.
He said even if the likes of Kadiri, Toro and Amun were to be part of the meeting, those he believed had no business being in the meeting should be asked to leave, if the parely was to hold. In addition, he alleged that there was a conspiracy on the part of Ekeji to undermine members of the NFF Executive Committee.
Despite the position of Green, Ekeji went ahead to explain the importance of the parley and expressed hope that in the end lasting solutions would be found. He, therefore, asked the NFF President to make further comments, if he had any.
However, before Maigari could say a word, Green again got to his feet and took on Ekeji head on this time.
“We never knew this was going to be a world press conference where we would be sandwiched by people that are not members of the football federation or members of the football family. If that is the case, it means what you said we are here to find solutions to the problems, loopholes are in there.
“We can only rub minds with some of our senior colleagues as well as ourselves to find the way forward. If there are issues, we would resolve them as amicably as we can. That is our position”.
The moment he sat down, his colleague, Barrister Olaleye Adepoju took the floor as he hit the nail on the head accusing Ekeji of bringing the committee members together to dish out a hand note to them.
“The type of people we have here shows that we have been brought here to have a hand out by the government. We have seen some of our senior colleagues and by virtue of their positions; we can consult them without you being involved.
“Your perception about this meeting is different from ours and I wonder how we would come to the middle. We are here to take instructions; we are here to rub minds, where is the level playing ground? he asked rhetorically.
Based Green and Adepoju’s position which found support in their colleagues, Ekeji asked journalists and other people including Barrister Dudu Orumen, former member of the NFA technical committee to leave.
Thereafter the NSC D-G also left for the meeting to continue. The ex-NFA scribes and members of the committee had over three hours closed door meeting.
In the end, Toro told journalists that what took place that day was phase one of the reconciliation efforts. He said the second phase would target other aggrieved parties like Chief Segun Odegbami and Jarret Tenebe. He expressed confidence that recommendations to be forwarded to the NSC would go a long way in resolving the crisis.
Despite his optimism, those who saw the countenance of Ekeji and his aides while the ‘attack’ on him by the two NFF executive committee members lasted, will know that the battle is far from over.
Now, the big question is, with the coming on board of the three wise men- Kadiri, Toro and Amun, is an end to the lingering crisis in sight? More events which will unfold next week would determine the fate of Nigerian football. For now, it is uneasy calm that is in the air.