Nigerian Football
NFF silent on Gombe FA deadlock but sets up interim bodies for others
A Gombe State Chief District Court 10 has restrained the State Football Association (FA) from holding its planned election.
The election which was scheduled to hold soon was meant to elect new officials of the association in the state.
However, the court after receiving a petition and application for an order stopping the election from a member of Gombe State Sports and Football Stakeholders Forum Alhaji Ahmed Shuaibu Gara over allegations of lack of fairness in the process issued the order.
But that not withstanding, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has been silent on the issue even when it has opted to immediately set up Normalization Committees for temporary administration of the football associations of Akwa Ibom, Nasarawa, Kogi and Kaduna States.
The NFF pointed at flagrant disregard of directives by the said State FAs to back its stand.
It ordered the four state FAs not to proceed with conduct of their elections as a result of court injunctions and petitions, in varying cases, and various shades of irregularities in the processes leading to the so-called elections.
Ali Muhammad Abubakar, NFF’s Head of Member Associations, explained: “Normalization Committees will be set up for Akwa Ibom, Nasarawa, Kogi and Kaduna States. All four States have failed to uphold the Statutes and the electoral code in their processes. Article 85 of the FIFA-approved NFF Statutes, under Unforeseen Contingencies and Force Majeure clearly stipulates that ‘the Executive Committee shall have the final decision on any matters not provided for in the Statutes or in cases of force majeure’.
“However, the NFF has decided to uphold the decision of the Edo State FA to pass a vote of no confidence on its chairman, Mr. Rowland Abu, and to have the vice chairman in the role of Ag. Chairman. He has been told to lead the charting of a roadmap to the conduct of free, fair and credible local football councils’ elections and subsequently, the FA executive committee elections.”
Thenff.com gathered that a monitoring committee set up by the NFF will be in Jos on Monday, 12 June 2023 to assess the current situation in the Plateau State Football Association, and subsequently take a decision on the swirling controversies in the FA’s situation.
A normalization committee was approved for Akwa Ibom State because elections were conducted in contravention of a court injunction, and subsequent advice by the NFF not to go ahead. The tenure of the executive committee had since elapsed on 23 May.
With regards to Nasarawa State, so-called elections were conducted into the FA executive committee without first conducting elections into the local football councils, and the identities of delegates were shrouded in secrecy. The tenure of the FA board had since expired on 27 May. The situation in Kogi State was similar, with the tenure of the Kogi State FA executive committee having expired on 28 May.
As for Kaduna State, the tenure of the board expired on 31 May without elections, either into the local football councils (which were dissolved nearly four years ago) or the State FA.
The miserable run of Akwa United and Ikorodu City came to an end after six games in the Nigerian Premier League this season. Both teams were initially glued at the bottom of the league table.
They now got respite as Akwa United beat Kano Pillar by 2-0 while Ikorodu City even did what could be considered an upset, beating Bendel Insurance 3-0.
Remo Stars bounced back to the top of the log after a 3-0 defeat of Nasarawa United. Shooting Stars are yet to get their rhythm this season, playing a barren draw with Enyimba in Ibadan.
Kwara United who got their first full points of the season last week after a 1-0 defeat of Remo Stars could not consolidate as they were beaten 1-0 by Abia Warriors.
Heartland under Emmanuel Amuneke are gradually recovering as they got a valuable away draw against El-Kanemi Warriors.
BY KUNLE SOLAJA.
It is 75 years since Nigeria’s national football team first played an international match. That was on 8 October 1949 when the first set of Nigeria’s assembly on their return voyage stopped over in Freetown and engaged Sierra Leone in an international football match. Nigeria won 2-0, setting a chain of positive results on 8 October.
The country never lost any competitive duel on that date. More significantly, the Super Eagles first qualified for the World Cup on an 8 October date.
That was in 1993 when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Algeria in the quest for USA ‘94 World Cup.
Nigeria became the first English-speaking African country to qualify for the World Cup. Another significance of the October 8 match at the July 5 Stadium, Algiers is that Nigeria were unbeaten for the first time by Algeria at home.
The only deviation from the 8 October Magic was in 2015 when Nigeria lost 2-0 to Congo in a friendly match.
Twenty-six years after Nigeria’s debut international match, one of Africa’s biggest football nations, Egypt fell to the October 8 magic, losing 4-0 to Nigeria in the last stage of the triangular World Cup qualifying series for Argentina ’78.
Up till October 15, 2013, when Ghana beat Egypt 6-1 in Kumasi, the October 8, 1977 duel with Nigeria remained Egypt’s biggest loss in a World Cup qualifying match.
Before the 1977 duel, Nigeria in 1963 played a friendly match with Liberia in Monrovia. The October 8 magic was active, even in an away match. Nigeria drew 2-2 in their very first encounter with Liberia. It was shortly after the team had, through a protest, upturned a victory by Guinea to pick Nigeria’s very first African Nations’ Cup ticket.
Little wonder then that when FIFA suspended Nigeria in 2010, the world governing body provisionally lifted the ban on October 8!
Nigeria on 8 October
- 1949 – Freetown (Friendly) Sierra Leone 0-2 Nigeria
- 1963 – Monrovia (Friendly) Liberia 2-2 Nigeria
- 1977 – Lagos (World Cup qualifier) Nigeria 4-0 Egypt
- 1993 – Algiers (World Cup qualifier) Algeria 1-1 Nigeria… qualify for USA ‘94.
- 2005 – Abuja (World Cup qualifier) Nigeria 5-1 Zimbabwe
- 2010 – FIFA, in apparent respect to the 8 October magic, provisionally lifted a ban imposed on Nigeria.
- 2011 – Abuja (African Nations Cup qualifier) Nigeria 2-2 Guinea. Although undefeated, Nigeria failed to make it to the 2012 African Nations Cup.
- 2015 – D.R. Congo beat Nigeria 2-0 in Visé, Belgium. The ‘October 8 Magic’ is finally broken.
Rivers United have launched themselves to the top of the log at the end of the match day 5 of the Nigeria Premier League. The Port Harcourt side beat Akwa United 2-1 to go afloat after initial leaders, Remo Stars crumbled to a 1-0 defeat at Kwara United in Ilorin on Sunday.
It was Remo Stars’ first defeat in the season. Rivers United are now with 13 points. Stephen Mayo put Rivers United ahead after 31 minutes. But it turned a temporary lead as Akwa United bounced back almost at the blast of the referee’s whistle for the second half.
Friday Apollos levelled up for Akwa United before Ndifreke Effiong Udo scored the winner in the 85th minute.
Sunday Results
- Kwara United 1-0 Remo Stars
- Rangers International 1-0 Abia Warriors
- Heartland FC 2-0 Niger Tornadoes
- Kano Pillars 2-0 Sunshine Stars
- Plateau United 1-0 Ikorodu City
- Rivers United 2-1 Akwa United
- Enyimba 3-0 Katsina United* Suspended
- Nasarawa 0-0 Bayelsa United
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