By Andrew Warshaw
August 15 – Nigeria and Ghana, whose respective federations have been gridlocked for several weeks, have been warned by FIFA to halt “undue influence” in their affairs by outside authorities or risk being thrown out of international football.
Nigeria’s ban could begin with immediate effect if the Nigeria Football Federation “offices are not handed back to the legitimate NFF executive committee under president Amaju Pinnick.”
Pinnick was recently restored as federation president with the backing of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) who named him as its first vice president to replace Ghana’s scandal-tarnished Kwesi Nyantakyi.
But Nigeria’s Federal High Court refused to grant a request to stop Chris Giwa, founder of a rival faction but who is currently banned by FIFA, from running the federation.
Giwa has long been protesting the result of elections in September 2014 and the NFF are due to hold fresh polls on September 20 when Pinnick’s four-year term is coming to an end.
Local reports say NFF headquarters have been occupied at different times by both factions of the federation’s Congress.
But FIFA says the current leadership battle must end – now – and that Nigerian football federation headquarters must return under Pinnick’s full control by August 27 or the country will be suspended.
A statement from FIFA added that any ban would not affect Nigeria’s ongoing participation at the Women’s Under-20 World Cup in France.
As for Ghana, conspicuous by its absence at the FIFA Congress in June, FIFA have until now failed to intervene over moves by the attorney general to have the national association dissolved. But FIFA says any such manoeuvres must be withdrawn, also by August 27, or a ban will be imposed.
The chaos in Ghana, where football activities have halted, came in the wake of Ghana FA boss and FIFA Council member Kwesi Nyantakyi becoming embroiled in a bribery scandal after being pictured taking $65,000 from an undercover reporter pretending to be a businessman.
Nyantaki has been suspended for 90 days by FIFA and the government has remained adamant that dissolution is the only way forward.
But a letter signed by FIFA secretary general Fatma Samoura says that “if the petition to start the liquidation process of the GFA is not withdrawn by Monday 27 August 2018 at 1100GMT the GFA will be suspended with immediate effect.”
A global ban would put Ghana’s African Cup of Nations qualifier against Kenya on 8 September in doubt while Nigeria are due to travel to face Seychelles the same weekend.
The full FIFA statement is as follows: “Two decisions of the Bureau of the FIFA Council in relation to undue influence in the affairs of the Nigeria Football Federation and the Ghana Football Association have been notified on 13 August 2018.
In line with art. 16 par. 1 of the FIFA Statutes, the Bureau of the FIFA Council decided that if by Monday, 20 August 2018, at 12:00 (CET), the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) offices are not handed back to the legitimate NFF executive committee under President Amaju Melvin Pinnick, who was duly elected on 30 September 2014, the NFF will be suspended with immediate effect for contravening art. 14 par. 1 i) and art. 19, as well as art. 14 par. 1 a) of the FIFA Statutes.
The suspension would be lifted only once the NFF, under President Amaju Melvin Pinnick and General Secretary Mohammed Sanusi, confirms that it has been given back effective control of the NFF and its offices.
Furthermore, the Bureau decided that if the suspension of the NFF takes effect, the Nigerian team currently competing in the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup France 2018 will still be allowed to continue to participate in the tournament on an exceptional basis given that the tournament is underway.
In Ghana, it is noted that formal investigation proceedings are currently being carried out by the chairperson of the investigatory chamber of the Ethics Committee against Mr Nyantakyi, who has been provisionally suspended by a decision taken by the chairperson of the adjudicatory chamber of the Ethics Committee. However, the Bureau of the Council considers that the petition introduced by the Attorney General to the High Court of Justice to start the liquidation process of the GFA constitutes undue influence in the affairs of the GFA in contravention of art. 14 par. 1 i) and art. 19 par. 1 of the FIFA Statutes.
Under these circumstances, the Bureau decided that if the petition to start the liquidation process of the GFA is not withdrawn by Monday, 27 August 2018 at 12:00 (CET), the GFA will be suspended with immediate effect. The suspension would be lifted only once the above-mentioned petition is withdrawn and FIFA is given written proof thereof.’’
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