Date Published: 07/05/10
The Mafia ruining Nigeria's Football by Ayodeji Oladunjoye
They are known in the world of football as a “mafia”. Some authorities will refer to them as ‘ruining’ our football, some others say, they are ‘running’ our football. Whichever one they do should no more bother you. Their incompetence nearly cost the nation her ticket to play in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Their gross incompetence caused why and how the Super Eagles fumbled and wobbled in South Africa. Here are the people mis-governing our football.
SANI ABDULLAHI LULU: A neophyte who could not succeed as a sports administrator in the FCT where he used to work. He was a potent force used against the re-emergence of Ibrahim Galadima, the erstwhile Chairman of the Nigerian Football Association (NFA). When he was contesting for this office, he promised the nation to “sanitise our football”. Karma has caught up with him. The sanity he has brought is confounding and confusing. He’s been so busy playing the politics of securing a second term leaving the world cup successes to God and prayers. He has led Nigeria to the worst African Nations Cup outing in 26 years in Ghana in 2008! Under his tenure, $400,000 got missing but lied it was $200,000 and his superiors added a little more truth to say it was $236,000. The magistrate handling the case gave a “wonderful” judgment at 9:00pm. He was scheduled to be in South Africa with flight, accommodation and visa procured by the NFF alongside his children. They are a part of Lulu’s 300-man jamboree to the world cup. The Super Eagles under him has not had the quality of organisation required to support the team to succeed. Some sources who know say he is richer than seven state governments put together. The financial mismanagement in the NFF is reputed to be the worst ever under his tenure. He is sure getting a kangaroo football congress to vote for him no matter what Nigerians feel about him. He and his boss, Dr Amos Adamu, have sealed the fate of Nigeria. Ibrahim Bio, the Sports minister, has been reported to FIFA for interfering in the matters of football!
AMANZE UCHEGBULAM: He is a contractor of sorts. He is so controversial. What with the Bayelsa State FC Indiamaowei scandal? The man whose exit when he was a staffer of the Leventis Group is a blur point that ordinarily should disqualify him from holding public office is going round as Lulu’s Vice. We have more information to serve on the Leventis saga. Those who know say he was dismissed in the Apapa office of the Lebanese multi-national company. He is said to have recruited a Lebanese-Nigerian in the football circle to help remove the dismissal documents and reconstruct his records. We heard about N7.5m went into this project.
TAIWO OGUNJOBI: His tenure as the Secretary General to Ibrahim Galadima was shrouded in all manners of controversies and questionable conducts. He is Lulu’s Chairman of the Technical Committee. He is the head of the team that informed reports claim ‘helps’ some untouchable Super Eagles players get insurance and assurance of their shirts in the team irrespective of the position of the technical crew (both under Shaibu Amodu and Lars Lagerback). Dudu Orumen, a barrister, resigned from the committee when he could no more stomach the oligarchic nature of the government of the Glass House. To Ogunjobi’s committee, current form and ability are not the criteria of their oversight functions on the Super Eagles coach. It is this that guarantees his survival. He was dismissed on the 18th February 1998 in a letter personally signed by Oyo State military administrator, Colonel Ahmed Usman for heavy financial mismanagement.
BOLAJI OJOOBA: He is the Secretary General of the Nigerians Feeding on Football (NFF). He is a doctorate degree holder in Physical and Health Education (His spoken English can discourage you to believe that he bought the certificate). He got the office through the deft manipulation of the rules governing his employment courtesy of the dual citizen of Ogbomoso (Oyo State) and Zuru (Kebbi State), Dr. Amos Adamu who was the Director General of the National Sports Commission (NSC).
Ojooba, is unarguably the longest serving staffer of the federation having been perambulating there for decades in various categories. The Ogbomoso man was once recommended by a panel to be banned for life from participating in national football issues for some ‘inadequacies’. The Federal Government published a White paper where he was so banned. Unlike Salisu Buhari, the former Speaker of the House of Representatives who got a presidential pardon for his ‘inadequacies’, this man got a reprieve from Dr Adamu who smuggled him into office. There was no court order to the contrary on the panel or federal government indictment.
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