The Federal High Court sitting in Jos Division has denied granting Writ of Execution for Mr. Chris Giwa to take over the leadership of the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF.
Mr. Giwa, who is the proprietor of Giwa FC, had in company of his lieutenants stormed the NFF Glass House in Abuja on Friday, in a bid to forcefully take over.
He was however said to have been repelled by NFF senior officials who were at the secretariat when the group came.
The NFF Board led by President Amaju Pinnick had approached the Jos Court for clarification on the controversial Order/Writ of Execution.
Giwa had flaunted the Writ of Execution on Friday at the Glass House, claiming it was received and acknowledged by NFF officials.
NFF spokesperson, Ademola Olajire’s statement on the writ of execution reads:
The latest antic by Chris Giwa and his group to continue to lay some claim to leadership of the Nigeria Football Federation has been blown to smithereens, after the Federal High Court, Jos disowned the ‘writ of execution’ being bandied by the group.
In an interview in his office in Jos on Monday, the Registrar of the Federal High Court, Jos, Mr. Nasiru Gusau said the document did not emanate from the court.
“We did not issue any writ of execution on this matter. What you are saying is strange to me,” Gusau told thenff.com on Monday.
Gusau explained further: “The Giwa people made an application for writ of execution, which the court declined. The court cannot execute a declaratory judgment or an interlocutory order.
“Moreover, if the case is on appeal, how can the High Court issue a writ of execution?”
It has now become clear that in their desperation to attain some relevance in Nigeria football, Giwa and cohorts would stop at nothing, including the ridiculing of the judiciary.
An undated and completely invalid ‘writ of execution’ was submitted at the NFF secretariat on Friday, by an Executive Officer (Accounts) with the Federal High Court, Jos, Langmbweng Enoch Wupeh. The ‘writ of execution’ was, strangely, prepared and signed by Plaintiff Counsel (Giwa’s lawyer), and to it was attached only the first two orders made by the court, leaving out the most recent orders that struck out the first two, as well as the Hon. Judge’s clarification. The signature of a ‘Judge’ (no name) was poorly forged.
Gusau had earlier clarified the interim order made by the court on 8th April, saying the court only re-listed the Giwa case for hearing and never said Giwa should assume leadership of the NFF. The Honourable Judge M. H. Kurya himself clarified the order he gave, dated 14th April 2016, while delivering his ruling on the application by NFF for leave to appeal.
Giwa and members of his group, emboldened by the sham document, invaded the NFF Secretariat on Friday afternoon with a number of thugs, but were repelled by NFF Staff and sent away by the police.
After its 25 –minute misadventure at the Glass House, the Giwa group issued a self –deluding statement that it had ‘taken over’ the NFF.
The invasion came only 24 hours after a peace meeting ordered by the Nigeria Parliament. Deputy Chairman of the House Committee on Sports (which is saddled with the responsibility), Rt. Hon. Anayo Nebe, at the weekend expressed huge disappointment with the Giwa group’s action.
