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…State FAs disagree with NSC over mode of headship of NFF
From Romanus Ugwu, Abuja
As the world football governing body, FIFA, and the continental body, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) hold separate consultative meeting with football stakeholders on Monday in Abuja, there was strong indication that Nigeria football may be plunged into a fresh crisis.
In line with the directive of the Federal Government to reform the administration of the round leather game in the country, FIFA delegation, which arrived Nigeria on Sunday night to kickstart consultation met with relevant stakeholders on Monday.
The two football governing bodies that preferred to meet the stakeholders in batches had in the morning hours held consultative meeting with the secretariat staff before a similar engagement with other stakeholders at a hotel in Abuja.
However, the position of the chairmen of the State Football Association (SFAs) gave an inkling of what to expect from the FIFA’s visit due to their insistence on the identity and the headship of the federation.
Speaking to newsmen after appearing before the FIFA delegation, team leader of the State FAs, Yakubu Sarma, revealed the point of disagreements with the National Sports Commission (NSC) are on the identity of whether Normalisation or Caretaker Committee and or appointing an internal or external person to head the federation.
He said that while the NSC is insisting on bringing an external person to head the federation, the stakeholders are angling for an internal person.
Asked the biggest takeaway from their meeting with FIFA, he said: “The key issue we presented before FIFA as congress members representing the FA is that Nigeria football is not in any way in crisis because our leagues are on, our clubs playing their continental matches, our girls are playing international and secretariat of NFF is functioning. So, there is no crisis in Nigeria’s football, that is number one.”
“Secondly, we recognise that there is leadership vacuum and how do we go about filling the vacuum so that we can continue. The position of FA chairmen as members of Congress is that the statute of NFF as provided for as well as CAF and FIFA statutes have provided all the necessary and needed mechanism through which this kind of leadership vacuum can be settled.
“We don’t need to go outside the established frame work to start actually bringing about solution. One cardinal thing that the congress members as FA chairmen agreed upon and stated before FIFA is that nobody is against reform.
“In fact it will interest you to know that we presented before FIFA in the recent reform that we carry through the statute amendment. Out of the 54 reform frame work that is presented by the National Sports Commission 67% has already been carried through the amendment of the statute, only some percentages that are actually not there.
“We are ready for reform but the reform vehicle is what we are actually saying that we do it internally, we don’t need people to come from outside to reform us.
“What we mean from outside is that the congress is still standing and has the capacity to go through the statute to set up a Caretaker Committee to carryout the reform process and not an outsider to reform us,” he said.
Highlighting other points of disagreement, he said: “For now it is whether there should be normalisation committee or interim committee, that is only where we differ with the NSC as congress and our point is that you don’t bring somebody from outside to reform you, you can reform yourself if you so wish,” he said.
Earlier on Monday, stern-looking, gun-wielding security agencies, comprising majorly the operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) and the Nigeria Police Force had taken over the headquarters of football federation.
It was easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for visitors and stakeholders to gain entrance into the NFF secretariat as the security agencies subjected them to multiple rigours of screening exercise from the entrance gate before allowing very insignificant few entrance while denying others.
The security agencies numbering over 20 personnel who arrived with several official vehicles had strategically positioned themselves around the secretariat with intimidating guns, scanning and monitoring every movement around the vicinity.
The attempt by our correspondent to gain entrance into the secretariat complex was resisted by the security agencies with the reason that high-level management meeting was going on inside.
They stressed that order from above had directed that journalists should not be allowed entrance into the complex or operate anywhere inside the secretariat.
Earlier, an official vehicle from the State House, judging by the number plate, had stormed the secretariat to deliver some files containing some documents before the commencement of the management meeting.
