By Mark Baber
September 22 – The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) met on Saturday to set the date for new elections, in line with FIFA’s directives, but apparently in contravention of a court order obtained by the Chris Giwa faction, who still regard their man as the legitimately elected President.
The NFF congress in Warri, presided by outgoing NFF president Aminu Maigari, announced the new executive committee elections will be held on September 30 whilst also setting up an electoral committee and an electoral appeals committee.
Those standing for the presidency include Amanze Uchegbulam, Taiwo Ogunjobi, Mike Umeh, Dominic Iorfa, Shehu Dikko, Amaju Pinnick and Abba Yola.
The hope is that the elections, which are being arranged in accordance with a roadmap set out by FIFA, will bring order to the affairs of the NFF and bring an end to the continuing threat of Nigeria being suspended from international football.
Nigeria’s Minister of Sports Tamuno Danagogo urged football administrators to put their house in order for the interests of the nation. However, the chances of the turmoil continuing are high as those attending Saturday’s Congress were acting in defiance of a court order reportedly issued on Friday, to which the attendees turned a blind eye, claiming they had not been served the papers properly and the injunction was merely a “rumour”.
Two members of Giwa’s faction, Obinna Ogba and Yahaya Adama, who won Friday’s ruling by Justice AL Allagoa sitting in Jos, Plateau State that the NFF should not go ahead with the congress pending the hearing of the motion on notice, issued a statement saying they have instructed lawyers to commence contempt charges against the Aminu Maigari administration for “violent disobedience” of three recent court orders.
The plaintiffs argue that “Our reason for going to court is to assert the sovereignty of our nation, rescue Nigerian football from some gnomes and give hope to our children as well as bring unquantifiable joy to Nigerians each and every time the national team plays anywhere in the world.”
“The way and manner that Justice Allagoa’s orders were raped in the market place,” the plaintiffs add, “with the way and manner they shunned and went ahead with the Warri Congress is like asking what can he do with them?”
In response to the latest moves, CAF match commissioner Paul Bassey made a plea, saying: “You cannot sue football. We have always known this time and again. It doesn’t work. Trust me. I’m looking forward to elections on September 30. Please, please let nobody pull us back.”
It remains to be seen whether Bassey’s plea for Giwa’s followers to turn a blind eye to Saturday’s congress turning a blind eye to the court order falls on deaf ears.
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