By Harry Awurumibe, Editor Abuja Bureau
Despite the promise by the Interim Management Committee (IMC) to pay referees indemnities before matches in the 2022/2023 abridged Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL), members of the Nigeria Referees Association (NRA) insist that the league may suffer yet another delay.
This time the bone of contention is the none constitution of the statutory Referees Committee by Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) one week before the league kicks off, arguing that the right thing to do is to first put in place a body saddled with the task to select referees to officiate matches.
Prompt News can confirm that aggrieved NRA members are wondering how the new football league can start without the body that has the statutory right to appoint match arbiters as required by the law governing football.
According to a FIFA-badged referee who wants to remain anonymous, starting the new football season without a substantive NFF
Referees Appointment Committee amounts to putting the cart before the horse.
He argued that it will not augur well for the league or football in Nigeria should match officials appointment not handled by the experts as directed by the FIFA Circular 2020 sent to all Member Associations (MA) including the NFF but which has not been implemented in Nigeria.
Said he: “It is strange that the FIFA CIRCULAR 2020 which was forwarded to all Member Associations, it is only Nigeria that, has not complied with it, every other MA had complied except Nigeria. I am wondering why it is difficult for NFF to appoint a retired
expert in refereeing to head the Referees Committee as demanded by FIFA
CIRCULAR 2020. Also, how can the league start when there is no Referees Appointment Committee in place”.
He therefore doubts if the above observations will be swept under the carpet and the IMC push ahead with the league, saying that it will be a wrong move to start the new football season without a substantive NFF Referees Committee.
On the promise by IMC to pay referees indemnities in the abridged league
before matches, he said it is a welcome development but insists that NRA members will keep demanding for the payment of the three years accumulated match indemnities owed them by the defunct League Management Company (LMC).
“We should not lose sight of the fact that referees had not been paid in the last 3 years.
Referees indemnities were not paid for over 3 years yet a new season wants to start. I hope the authorities will do the needful and on time too to avoid problems”, the source concluded.
Prompt News reports that Alhaji Rabiu Inuwa Ahlan, NFF Executive Committee Member and Chairman of Kano State Football Association was the Chairman, NFF Referees Committee in the last dispensation while NFF Referees Unit is headed by Alhaji Sani Zubairu, a retired referee.
