Let me use this time to sincerely congratulate my friends that made it as Commissioners the recently inaugurated Abia State executive Council: Ugochukwu Emezue and Karibe Ojigwe, an ex-international.

On paper the twosome are great choice but you and I knew that they perform below expectations because of instructions/ briefings they were handed over by their principals.

That won’t form part of their mention here rather this columnist and numerous readers of this soar away Monday – Monday critical angle write up up wishes them beautiful and result oriented tenure that would form good reference each time their names are mentioned after they must have left their respective offices.

Truth that Abia State is so backward but one must quickly point out here that it did not start with the present administration of Okezie Ikpeazu as the others before him failed to add value to governance that would have laid developmental plans for the 30 year old State.

Well done, fellow Abians as you held sway this last lap of this administration that requires much from you.

If you go or judge by the daily injustices, increasing insecurity and other vices that are recurring like decimal you no doubt come to full realization that the country need divine intervention in every meaning and sense of the word.

To objective observers therefore it is no normal times in the country no matter the misinformation and judgment of worsening situation in the country in all facets by Garba Shehu, Lai Mohammed, Femi Adesina and other propaganda machine of the Buhari/APC. Things fell apart in the country since 2015 Buhari came into governance as tribal, despotic, fundamentalist of the worst order leader rather than nationalist.

Let me draw this curtain because head or tail, President Muhammadu Buhari and his cohorts in propagandist APC  are bad news, in short a nightmare.

As you are aware that it is not normal time in Nigeria today in all segments’.

Today in sports things are already upside down. Nothing is as it used to be before these locusts invaded the country since 2015. Nothing is result oriented any longer in sports and sundry in the nation.

This week sadly that out of four the clubs that qualified to represent Nigeria in CAF football Championships only one is still in the race and that is Enyimba International FC of Aba vying for honours in CAF Confederation Cup a second tier competition on the stable of Africa’s supreme football governing body.

It is on record that Akwa United FC, Rivers United FC were booted out in the just first round preliminary stage of the CAF Champions League a sad commentary on Nigerian League which one cannot vividly ascertain its grip and level.

Another representative Bayelsa United FC that paired with Enyimba International FC is out of the tournament. Rivers United will compete further because of it failed in the second round of the elite CAF Champs League.

So it is worrisome that the purported strong Nigerian clubs could not withstand the fireworks of other African countries team at the club side level. They fell like pack of cards. These clubs have strong backing financially and one also believes that the management did great spadework  in recruitment of players that know their onions in the field of play and technical crew that is round the clock and acts like quicksilver when it mattered most hand, it was obviously lacking in Akwa United when the team was in the race. In Rivers United also I don’t know what went wrong with veteran technical hand, Stanley Eguma and the raid the other season of Enyimba’s camp where her first rate players were lured into the Port Harcourt based team.

But their performances even at the NPFL games have been nothing spectacular.

Boma Iyaye the Sports Commissioner in the State thought it was all about gathering players but forgot that if there is no effort to harness such good players the result would be as fans and football pundits have witnessed so far that became the lot of Rivers United of late.

Now Boma Iyaye must have seen clearly the realities on ground as it affects Rivers United with her arrears of first rate good legs in our NPFL. The earlier Iyaye realises the difference between wishful thinking and projections the better for the well-funded team by the very prudent and Mr. Project himself, Governor Nyesom Wike who has great interest in the youths and never hide same.

Today Enyimba International is drawn alongside a Libyan team, Al-Itthad Tripoli in the last round to group stage of CAF Confederation Cup. Enyimba as veteran of many football battles are on trial against a crack Libyan side.

This Reporter is confident that the never say Aba team would come out stronger to face the Libyan team that is no mere push over. It is also instructive to note that the players of the team knew what stuff this Libyan team is made of. The messages from them and their technical hand, Findi George gives one glimmer of hope that it won’t be business as usual as the Nigerian representative carries football battle to their opponent’s arena in the first leg coming up November 28. George spoke vividly on the assignment ahead and his desire to run away with victory. It gladdens ones heart that the ex- international hammered on the game and the need for his wards to ensure total concentration during proceedings in the first leg. He acknowledged that there is no pressure at all.

However all said and done, the state of our NPFL is worrisome. The key players and stakeholders may not see it in that direction because to them the league in the country is doing great. The question that comes to mind is how on earth would a league that anybody that would claim nothing is wrong with NPFL defend the anomaly whereby our teams is CAF competitions perform worst of outings in the first round of such championships even being booted out by teams in war torn countries in the continent.

It remains unheard of and laughable in every reasonable sense of it. These teams are well funded by her respective State governments and fans also assumed the various managements engaged sound recruitment  to prosecute the league and other competitions that the club would participate in that particular season.

The performances of our teams in this year’s CAF competitions left soured taste in the mouth. It would be recalled that the country entered four teams at the two CAF championships but the end of the first round of the various competitions, only one is still hanging grippingly on and that is Enyimba International FC , however Rivers United was demoted to do battle in that second tier cadre.

It then brought to the fore the widely held suspicion of the corrupt free NPFL. Many have held the notion that the sharp practices amongst club and the key actors of the league body has remained a clog on the wheel of progress of our local league which has failed woefully to produce quality and worthy champions.

Accusing fingers have been pointing at match officials over these years of aiding and abetting match fixings but nobody has been caught rather what we have witnessed more are finger pointing at certain members of the Nigeria Referees Council, their officials and NPFL officers in collaboration in such unholy alliance that has put great question mark on the quality of teams we turn out each league season.

Actually we have seen the worst of performances by our supposedly first team clubs in NPFL at the ongoing season in CAF competitions. One prays that the remaining teams note that Rivers United is by the rule of the championship still hanging out  there though at the lower tier otherwise the team had gone the Akwa United way.

Let keep hope alive and still hope for the best in future engagements. Stick to www.dailysportsng.com  and this column every Monday. Our social media handles are ever active. Keep shooting hard till next week as the struggle continues!!!