By By Victor Enyinnaya on May 29, 2022

Let me begin this way that I don’t want to comment on the out come of Nigeria/ Mexico friendly because the system that threw it up remains deceitful. In short, the one Nigerians are already tired of. So can good come off such lame duck set up?  

I’m an incurable optimist and so I push any cause I believe solely in vigorously. And as veteran of football cum sports coverages both locally and internationally,  I have come to have very thick skin which absolves any kind of eventuality.

Truth is that the elective congress of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) comes up later this year to usher in brand new executive committee that would oversee our football for the new dispensation.

Of truth again is that Nigerian football like the Nigerian nation is completely in total ruins.

Like the Nigerian nation, her football has no direction. Like the Nigerian nation where Mahammadu Buhari and his All Progressives Congress, (APC) locusts have ravaged the entire fabric of her nationhood, and also in reserved order is how Amaju Pinnick and his own locusts have sucked dry and left our once up a time reverend fledging football and  stripped it necked in the crowded international market square.

Like Mahammadu Buhari and his APC set the hand of Nigeria’s clock backwards enduringly so also has became the lots of NFF via Amaju Pinnick and his co-travelers’ in our football today. However, I am not one that cries over spilled milk.

The third truth in this write up is that Amaju Pinnick came into the leadership of the NFF with lots of vivid goodwill and promises that gave the impression that the messiah of our football had come. What we have seen so far is our football in all ramifications being left in total despair, proving those that played drums for the Warri, Delta State born football administrator to be complete disaster of the worst order. Amaju Pinnick to say the obvious is a betrayal and disappointment to all that brought him to lead our football. And they have all seen clearly now that the rain is gone. I.e. where our football is when he took over and presently.

The above is just to refresh your memories dear ardent readers of this page every Monday and the reason why the musical chair in apex football governing body must change this year for the good of the game in the country.

My take is for a progressive new breed and pragmatic administrators to mount the saddle for onward repair of the colossal damage done to our football so far.  One that will rebuild and bring back what it takes to run football, lead us back to winning ways and also restore administrative best practices to our national football. Nigerian football in all intents deserves the best. 

I have categorically on this page restated the need for those outside this callous and failed Amaju Pinnick led executive committee vie for new places in NFF 2022. Therefore they must pull themselves together and ensure this inept administration is defeated from returning through their agents in the likes of Shehu Dikko, Seyi Akinwunmi etc.  All of them are failures. They must be cleanly swept away. So make no mistake about it.

It is therefore incumbent on the likes of Peterside Idah, Benedict Akwuegbu and those who have signified their interest to vie for the President of the body against frontline aspirant, Emeruwa Christian to work together and sort it out amicably.

There must be absolute understanding between these aspirants so that one strong and administratively sound will be presented for the President of the NFF elective congress. My stand has not changed that more ex-internationals should come out to contest for the executive committee member positions in the incoming dispensation.

I dare say also that our ex-internationals should come out boldly and take their rightful positions in the NFF instead of the second fiddle and beggarly committee positions some of them were offered in the technical and development committee.

These ex-internationals have contributed immensely to the progress of our football and must come out and occupy the executive committee seats in our fast fading football. The past regimes have ruined our football.

The uphill task which faces Nigerian football today is how the younger individuals who have signified interest to contest for positions in the NFF would graciously be patriotic enough to forge ahead together by being wise and steadfast to make sacrifices which will bring sanity and harmony amongst them to ensure that this old order that has brought our football on its knees are flushed away in this year’s elective congress.

Emeruwa Christian, Peterside Idah and Benedict Akwuegbu; these three able men who have shown interests in becoming the President of the NFF must beam deep their searchlight and agree to support one person to decisively face one of the locusts sitting regime at present.

The picture on the horizon presently shows that it will be keen contest. While the incumbents have deep pockets to buy off all the delegates who will vote in the election, others should assiduously, honestly and earnestly campaign for one another. The new order aiming to dislodging the oligarchy from power must be thorough because, it will never be a tea party. They must prepare to the teeth.  It will not be an easy task. They will fight tooth, nail and finish to retain power. They have the money which they stole from the office which they are supposedly holding in trust for the public.

Politics in any level in Nigeria is synonymous with money. The forthcoming NFF elective congress won’t be an exception.  In short it is like tradition there. This columnist is therefore appealing to all the aspirants to brace up and do wider consultations which I knew Emeruwa Christian has done and still doing.  The other aspect is the usual lopsidedness of election delegates in Nigeria. How best Emeruwa would go around and convince them wholesale remains great concern to this writer and other worried keen followers of Nigerian football elective congress over these years that is steadily nose diving every seconds, minutes and hours.

The delegates are always slippery. It is their tradition. I have followed a certain former member of the NFF now late to go round the States football federations to garner support for a one time top level football administrator and I saw and noted how these men in State FAs behave. They cannot be trusted even in the last minute or even seconds to voting.

It took my late friend’s acumen both in Nigerian and African football politics to finally convinced, closely monitor before he got good number of delegates from the States’ FAs. CAF is a beat easier because of its nature compared to Nigerian FA poll.

I did also went round African countries with that then jolly great fellow of NFF for campaign it paid off handsomely. That time the French speaking West African countries for instance were most straight forward I don’t know about now because I have distanced my self from these hawks parading themselves as NFF executive committee members, they don’t have conscience at all.

Our ex-internationals must not allow this old order to use them against this genuine consciousness that has sprung up to decisively challenge the existing status quo. They must wholeheartedly support this paradigm shift.   The earlier they understand that the present role very few of them are assigned to in the technical and development committee of the body is never their worth and so must ensure they come up to support the movement which would place them in decision making positions. They must be ready to come up and governor the game they played to the highest level. These pretenders that have held the administration of football in the land hostage thus far must be rooted out this forthcoming elective congress.

This young generation should not use uncalled and unnecessary tussle to spoil this golden opportunity to take over power in the NFF. Taking over power is not an easy thing especially against the kind currently occupying NFF seats. However with coordinated efforts, sincerity, determination, diligence, focus, vision etc it can be done. For instance, Emeruwa Christian has been an insider in the football governing body worked under two Presidents and Secretaries currently he is working in CAF.  He knows the terrain and can effectively lead the onslaught. Let  us watch and pray.

Keep shooting hard till next week, meanwhile, we wait!!  

Source Daily Sports Nigeria

Posted May 30, 2022

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