Basketball stakeholders call for ban on key actors of crisis News

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Basketball stakeholders call for ban on key actors of crisis

By Esther Pushe on June 7, 2022

A group, Concerned Basketball Stakeholders, has called on the Federal Government to ban all the key actors in the crisis rocking the game in the country.

In an open letter signed by Muhammad Sulaiman on behalf of the group, the CBS frowned at the state of the game in the country and called on President Muhammadu Buhari to ban leaders of the factions that led to Nigeria’s withdrawal from international basketball.

Sulaiman said: “Efforts to build a national Basketball team around foreign Players and the Afrobasket victories can only be useful to the Country if carefully conceived with backward integration, to have impact on the growth of Basketball in the Country and development of the economy.

“We acknowledge the enormous efforts of past Presidents of the Federation particularly in recent times, HRH U.K Umar and HRM The Gbong Gwom Jos, Elder Buba Gyang for their tireless efforts during their tenure at putting Basketball on a growth trajectory, that has gradually been eroded by ego parading and self-serving so-called administrators.

Between these two past Presidents, they have established age-group tournaments that saw Nigeria dominate African Junior Championships, win Olympic and World Cup tickets, and established highly competitive local leagues for Men and Women, from where many home grown athletes were drafted to elite leagues worldwide and colleges in the US.

“We have to put the records straight, and in addition by asking that the Federal Government to follow the dissolution of the board, with a ban on the key actors holding the game by the jugular over the last many years. We wish to re-affirm that Basketball is the goose that can lay the golden egg for our teeming youths, but can also with clinical and well thought out reform, provide the template for other Sports to follow so that Nigerian Youths can prosper.”

Sulaiman in the letter to the President also added: “Multiple meetings aimed at resolving the crises have yielded no positive results. The Ministry and the FG have been severally misrepresented many times to FIBA and the public by elements from the Musa Kida faction who have used the well-known blackmail tool of interference to tie Government, and make FIBA call Government a third party. By this, Nigeria's sovereignty is being challenged and trampled upon by the NBBF gladiators.

“FIBA completely ignored government’s invitation to visit Nigeria to look into the Basketball crises. The Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC) was equally snubbed.

“Also known, is that the Ministry with the knowledge of FIBA went ahead to set up the Basketball Reconciliation Committee with membership drawn from all disputing parties. The Ministry concurred to the salient recommendations of the Committee. Notwithstanding, the crisis continued.

“Our findings also have shown that there is no NBBF money lodged in the CBN and that the only money in the NBBF account with the CBN is the “Adopt-an-Athlete” funds to the tune of US$230k, to support the 24 basketball players that represented the Country at the Olympics.

This money has severally been confirmed, was raised by the Ministry and it was domiciled in the NBBF Domiciliary account until disbursement, and that the female players who have submitted their bank account details have since been paid US$9,500 each last year, and pending is the male players who are yet to submit their account details for payment.”

Source Daily Sports Nigeria

Posted June 7, 2022