Super Falcons: A fight well fought! News

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Super Falcons: A fight well fought!

By Daily Sports on December 19, 2016

To be candid, I had wanted not to write even one sentence on Super Falcons even before the shame and humiliation the Federal Government and its agencies brought upon the country and even on its patriotic citizens. But see me doing this due to repeated telephone calls and pressure from my readers across Nigeria and beyond. I have always known that Sports Pulse column is widely read, however, the FG vs Falcons saga has reaffirmed it.

You know my stand on NFF leadership and the future of Women football in the country. If the federation is not pointing at lesbianism as the bane of the game’s growth in Nigeria, due to the deep hate for women football by the Amaju Pinnick/Akinwunmi led NFF. A sole administrator is running the Women football contrary to NFF, CAF and FIFA statute. The NFF has failed to organise election one year after, into the board of Nigeria Women Football League (NWFL). From their antecedents, NFF by now is also supposed to be overseen by a sole administrator. Nigerian football has been in ruins since this lame duck leadership forced its way into the Glass House. The siege has been multiplying. We will stay with this man made virus for four years.

Honestly, the events that climaxed Super Falcons planned eviction from their Agura Hotel Abuja to subsequent placard carrying exercise to the National Assembly showed that the girls were finally home to roost. It was not a pleasant experience for the girls that faithfully against all man made (NFF) odds before, during and after, went, saw and conquered. It was a typical case of how not to reward hard work. The picture of Falcons would never courage hard work and self-reliance, a sing- song of Buharian mili-demo regime. I joined other citizens to salute Super Falcons. It was a fight well fought.

The Federal Government and by extension, the Sports Ministry and NFF are culprits of the first order for all the embarrassment which climaxed at the NASS Wednesday, December 14. We have come to live with a deaf and dumb government that hears only itself. Impunity has become the order of the day. A government that learns or studies geology on the eve of an earthquake qualifies to be referred to as heartless, clueless and never ready. How on earth will a so called government of ‘change’ subject their granddaughters to the kind of mess Super Falcons players and officials underwent.

Let’s be frank with ourselves, in civilised climes that value individual or team efforts will watch and clap in open soul amazement dastardly subject her all-conquering football squad and ‘locked’ them up in their hotel rooms against their will because of government’s refusal to pay their accumulated allowances and sundry. This is a team that is supposed to be welcomed with rousing celebration, but sadly and badly bruised with military brute, little wonder therefore; the girls got the bitter doses they never bargained for.

On that horrible note, you read that statement from NFF through assistant director of communications, Ademola Olajire, which remains the most unfortunate in that circumstance. The disjointed statement further left a bad taste in the mouth. Olajire trying to satisfy his masters shot the federation severally on the foot. It is only Olajire’s NFF that can exhibit such sadism and pretend as if the widely condemned maltreatment melted out to the victorious Falcons by the powers that be.

What a crude method to treat pure patriots. It could be safe to say also that this government again murdered the act of being patriotic, and now has no moral right to preach it. Without any prejudice, it is the shame of Buhari’s Nigeria where hypocrisy, selectiveness and favouritism have become the norm in all facets of life in Nigeria today.

The money the government would have used to take care of the citizens; it is using to amass weapons of destruction for the South East/South South regions who said enough of the years of long cheating and deprivation over what God had endowed their landscape with for the inhabitants’ well-being.

Make no mistake about it, the way and manner Falcons players, officials and technical crew were humiliated is man’s inhumanity to man. What happens in Nigeria is outlandish in all ramifications. My question is, if the girls were to be their own, would they have treated them like that?

Ardent reader of Daily Sports and the Monday column, Chidinma Ijioma wrote thus: “If a senior women team that brought honour to her country is treated like one that comes last in a tournament, what courage will the upcoming ones have to wear the green-white-green national colour? It’s a shame,” she lamented.

Nobody as usual envisaged that the FG vs Falcons imbroglio would escalate to high heavens, as it did. It was treated with kid gloves wider condemnations started pouring in from all angles before FG shamefully caved in hence the payment of all their outstandings and that of their male colleagues. The Falcons blast boiled over and brought to the fore, how government, its agencies and officials never cared a hoot about the welfare of her subjects rather their concern remains to amass wealth for their children’s children. FG released $1.173 million to offset the debts of Falcons and the Eagles bonuses. That is its burden; FG plays the piper and also dictating the tune in sports, therefore, it should be alive to its responsibilities and stop this international embarrassment it subjected the entire nation into.

Presently, two of Buhari’s ‘saints’, Lawal SGF and Magu, EFCC are having alleged corruption issues. Head or tail both are Buhari’s ‘saints’ and are in the eye of the storm. The world is eagerly watching and waiting how it goes. There are so many of such cases the Presidency has defiantly swept under, controversial Chibuike Amaechi and the Judges are one of the numerous.

Lawal is desperately daring the authority of the Senate, The Upper Chamber is saying documents involving him and his company in contract mess in IDPs camps nailed him. For Magu security report against him is damning and dripping. That same Senate said he has no clean hands to be on the equity table. These are some of the so called ‘saints’ of the self-acclaimed ‘anti- witch hunter in the name of ‘corruption’. These hunters are being hunted. I digress.

From which ever angle you are looking at it, the Falcons mind blowing experience is corruption by FG and NFF accessory to it, but because it is coming from the self-styled integrity man, it’s none of the above. The creations of notice me and food for the stomach Nigerians are that this government is like no other. I have said it severally that any government that fails to get on well with sports is a failed one because sports, especially football are why the outside world remembers there is any country like Nigeria.

Falcons’ avoidable incident is one among the kinds. For instance, the girls were in their hotel begging for their legitimate earnings, NFF chief; Amaju Pinnick was away in Cairo, Egypt filing his papers to vie for CAF executive committee seat. He has started early to prepare for an exit door for himself. He knows nobody survives second term in NFF. Falcons’ team is one of the reasons there is NFF he is presiding over today, but that is his level of thinking and reasoning. What the girls went through was never his business. CAF seat is more important and rewarding than Falcons. The players were in total distress. He and his men earlier brought the tricks it used on Falconets and Flamingoes after their World Cup misadventures on Falcons; it backfired and again brought their ineptitude act to the open. Here I say, hail Falcons! They ensured they got victory again in their protest against FG and NFF.

Pinnick in his usual arrogant posture did not discuss his ambition at the NFF executive committee meeting, hence the chairman technical and development committee, Sir Chris Green cried blue murder. Pinnick like a cunning fox outsmarted Green and others that would have opposed his candidature. I pity Sir Chris, with his high profile success story in football administration in Rivers State as he found himself among this ‘clownish’ board. This is the way these government officials are in this deeply and sharply divided Nigeria.

The NFF supremo is known for his snobbish act. He does not go out of job. He started in time to look for black goat in the day time before night falls. He has already earmarked war chest for the CAF election. He is also sponsoring a Ghanaian already in CAF executive committee to FIFA. That is part of the bargain to pave way for him for the African executive seat. He is an ambitious person. That was exactly how he found his way into NFF top seat. He saw Shehu Dikko as a threat to his ambition and the LMC chairman was detained until the election was won and lost. Dikko was beaconed upon to hold LMC top job and wait for the next election. It will be between him and Patrick Uba. Pinnick is a crafty politician.

Since then, he turned NFF into a trial and error theatre. It has cost us many international championships. It is in the public domain that Mikel Obi single handedly helped to win bronze at Rio Olympics. The determination and resilient spirit of Super Falcons won us the recently concluded 10th Africa Women Championship; we have seen how he aided the disgrace of the victorious girls. He always forgot where he was coming from. We were told he was a fantastic administrator in Delta State Sports Commission where he claimed he made landmark achievements. Even though, we have seen how football collapsed in the state. They were super stories. He built a larger than life image in Delta State. He handed a sick football association over to Austin Okocha. Let’s anchor thus far. The issue of allowances and bonuses for athletes in Nigeria remain work in progress. Discussion continues. Meanwhile, keeping shooting hard, till next week!

Source Daily Sports

Posted December 19, 2016