By Harry Awurumibe, Editor, Abuja Bureau
Nearly one week after the entire board of Nigeria’s football governing body threw in the towel, the Federation of International Football Association (FIFA) has accepted the mass resignations at Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) even as the engagements will continue on comprehensive reforms’ roadmap.
This is the outcome of the visit of the Nigerian delegation to FIFA headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland on Tuesday just as the world football-ruling body has accepted the resignations of principal officers of NFF- Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau and Dr. Mohammed Sanusi the erstwhile President and General Secretary respectively.
Also, FIFA has pledged to continue the engagement with Nigeria’s government, the NFF administration and the Confederation of African Football (CAF) on a new roadmap for comprehensive reforms of Nigeria football.
The meeting held inside FIFA House in Zurich was attended by FIFA and CAF leadership, CAF advisors, National Sports Commission (NSC) bigwigs and two NFF top administrative staff.
The highpoint was that it was agreed to proceed with engagements and interactions to fine-tune a roadmap that will ensure the delivery of the expected reforms both in the short, medium and long term, and to ensure that an inclusive new NFF emerges going forward and with the enabling environment, peaceful and stable to be in position to deliver success both on and off the pitch for the benefit and growth of Nigeria football.
NSC Chairman, Mallam Shehu Dikko led the Nigerian delegation, which also included the DG of the NSC, Hon. Bukola Olopade; former NFF President and ex-FIFA Council Member Amaju Pinnick OFR (who attended the meeting in his official capacity as Special Advisor to the CAF President and Deputy Chairman of the FIFA Men’s National Teams’ Competitions Committee; NFF Ag. General Secretary, Dr. Emmanuel Ikpeme and; NFF’s Director of Legal Services, Okey Obi Esq. CAF 2nd Vice President Kurt-Okraku and FIFA’s Director of Member Associations (Africa), Gelson Fernandes.
“Mutual engagement among the National Sports Commission, the NFF administration and the Confederation of African Football is ongoing with FIFA on the comprehensive reforms of Nigeria football, including agreeing a roadmap going forward in accordance with the relevant rules, regulations and Statutes, and indeed there is no doubt Nigeria Football will emerge much better and properly-structured after the conclusion of this process,” stated NSC Chairman at the end of the meeting.
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