ubamobile

27
Tue, Oct

Let a sleeping dog ‘lie’ without disturbance is a metaphor that sometimes show how weak an individual is in terms of confronting issues that are personal to him. Is NSC a sleeping dog? Should we let NSC lay motionless because of a Giant (really puppet) at the helm? I was informed of new Sports Minister or Chairman of NSC that was recently appointed without any commissioner named to the commission he is to lead. I will say again that this appointment of Chairman and lack of appointment of commission members simply suggests that the country missed road again. The country got the chance to right the wrong but choose mediocrity once again and at that one could only expect garbage and lots of scandals based on ineptitude and deliberate affront to common sense.

Recent Scandal

Such garbage and scandalous action occurred within days of Danagogo’s appointment by the former Sports Minister favorite pal heading the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN), with biggest blunder that vibrated locally and internationally. This loud uproar is AFN creation of its own Gestapo Empire where AFN is the prosecutor, judge and the enforcer of its own rule. Imagine this, AFN created a panel made up individuals lacking legal skills, medical skills, IAAF rules skills and formerly fired Saudi Arabia ineffective Coach to rule on issues concerning doping violations without any verifiable evidence. Without going in further details as this writer is aware of multi-billion Naira lawsuit pending, but it is safe to say:

1. The constituted panel is not independent of the accuser (AFN) and in fact have grudges that can be alleged as pay back to the accused individuals;

2. Eric Campbell and Dr. Ken Anugweje dissociated themselves from the panel resolve stating that they were pressured;

3. An individual was banned because the kangaroo panel said “it was not impossible for food supplement to be laced with banned substance”;

4. Femi Ayorinde does not have legal training or lab skills to identify banned agents, as this is medical law specialty not bachelor of surgery credential.

Clearly, AFN showed lack of leadership. Certain people are being finger-pointed and others been hidden from public scrutiny from doping offences. Panelists are afraid of lawsuits and now dissociating themselves from the panel conclusions and of course Eric Campbell can be sued in Georgia, USA for defaming his fellow citizen abroad. Mr. Campbell, there will not be jungle justice in Georgia rather your pockets and future earnings will pay for damages especially your cool $200,000 salary in Nigeria and any property you owned.

Furthermore, liberty or right to earn a living comes with unflinching exercise of such rights and only the judicial branch can rely on rules that may violate such rights but with one proviso and that is that it was proven beyond reasonable doubt that such person committed an offence. Can it be said that a parent feeding a child food purchased in supermarket can be banned because its’ not impossible for the food to be laced with banned substance. Well, only in AFN world of ineptitude and mediocrity can that happen.

Moving on, Commonwelth Games will be CommonWaste from all indications and it seems too late now to re-engineer the country’s preparation but this is not to take away our athletes’ efforts toward excellent performances. To do well will be a tall order that is so tall, but not impossible because miracle does happen, however.

Looking forward

Come 2015 there will be new people in charge of sports but its’ clear those imposed on athletes now are on path of destruction to pave way for the same mediocrity to continue.

NSC tampered with legislative creation of a Doping Centre by converting such federally Gazette property into High performance Centre without a legislative mandate to do so. Predecessor Minister brought in two individuals from abroad without satisfying Nigeria’s Procurement Act that Mr. Lamido Sanusi was accused of and this illegally hired individual sat on a panel that acted contrary to Nigeria’s constitution.

Now, AFN is destroying personalities that are relevant to the country’s success in the past and years to come because of its alleged likely hidden agenda to destroy athletics in the future and must be stopped immediately. Danagogo take note, take action or you must go. God help, Nigeria.

I rest

Dr. Rashid A. Balogun, CPA, LLB(Hons.), LLM(London)

The leadership of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has expressed disappointment over a statement of Super Eagles Chief Coach, Stephen Keshi that the wives of the players would be allowed to go with their husbands to Brazil for the FIFA World Cup competition.

According to a representative of the NFF who spoke anonymously to journalists, the issue had earlier been discussed and agreed upon, that wives accompanying the players would only mean distraction to them.

“There was a meeting of which Keshi was part where it was stated that having the wives with the players will be a distraction, hence it should not be approved”, the NFF official said.

He further stated other issues discussed earlier with Keshi, saying that because NFF agreed with him, not to bring in a foreign physical trainer, he should also respect NFF’s no-wife-in-Brazil stand.

“That particular meeting was when the issue of a foreign fitness trainer was mooted, which Keshi rejected. Mind you, we did not impose the foreigner, we actually asked for his opinion. So, we cannot understand why Keshi would go ahead to say what he said”, the NFF bos added.

Keshi had told the press that allowing the players to take their wives along to the competition would be a big psychological boost to them. He had applauded the idea at a media parley organised by Tom Tom, an official partner of the NFF, last week in Lagos.

But the NFF official argued that Keshi is aware of the financial situation of the federation, that it does not have adequate financial muscle to sponsor players and their spouses, so he should not have flaunted the idea again. It is unclear, though, if the N2 billion approved for the team’s World Cup campaign covers the players’ partners.

In 1994, when Keshi captained the team to the World Cup in United States of America (USA), the spouses of married players were sponsored to the competition by the government. This may be the reason why Keshi, having experienced the benefits of having the players’ wives with them during the competition, is advocating strongly for it again.  

However, the NFF boss revealed that the issue would be resolved at the next meeting with Keshi in Abuja on Monday. 

 

 

The Super Eagles of Nigeria will not begin their final preparations for the Brazil 2014 FIFA World Cup until 26th May 2014, as most of the team’s players would still be involved with their clubs until then.

According to Ademola Olajire, the assistant director of communications of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), the players will be busy with their clubs until the middle of May, after which the team can then begin serious preparation for the tournament.

“The players are expected to arrive at the team’s camp in the U.S. on 26th May 2014, two days to the international friendly with Scotland”, he revealed.

“Right now, the players are still committed to club activities until the second week of May when most the leagues in Europe will end. The players will have about two weeks’ rest period before the deadline for arrival in camp”.

He also spoke on the intensity of competition for places in the team, saying the players understand that they have to do their all to impress Coach Stephen Keshi or miss out on the plane to Brazil.

Still on the World Cup, club managers in the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) have urged Keshi to spend time watching matches in the domestic league in order to discover more players.

“Talented players abound in the league and can still be identified if Keshi adequately monitors the competition”, Chairman of Enyimba International FC of Aba, Mr. Felix Anyansi-Agwu said.

“We have good players in the league with what Nigeria did at the African Nations Championship (CHAN) in South Africa last January”.

Similarly, General Manager of Rangers International FC of Enugu, Mr Paul Ozor urged Keshi to scout for more home-based players, who could be placed on standby ahead of preparations for the World Cup.

“The players that were taken to the 2014 CHAN were not the best the country could produce”, Ozor said. “The World Cup is a different ball game. It is where the country’s best players will be needed”.

Can any human being be certain when a goat gets angry? No, it’s not about instigating such observation rather it is about how the animal deals with everyday bondage its’ been subjected to. Bondage living is a situation whereby an individual has no control over his or her liberty because others predetermine it, arguably a slave mentality coupled with useless and meaningless human rights enshrined in a country’s constitution. This writer asks what the effective value of human rights is when societal necessaries diminish such rights.

An average athlete has freedom of liberty, right to free speech and association but in order to eat or provide for his family, the National Sports Commission (NSC) and Sports federation habitually invites athletes to a slave camp where those fundamental rights are thrown away. Is this not bondage or enslavement? Is this not gross violation of the constitution? Carrots and sticks analogy or bribery metaphor does not explain the magnitude of these atrocities that continues unabated. This must stop.

Sports governance begins with leadership with qualities of a true leader not an imposed perambulator. The followers must predetermine a true leader; he must be an individual with extremely high leadership qualities including a strong academic and working experience related to such endeavor. In Nigeria however, this is a fantasy or dream right out of academic folklore because such view of leadership is tantamount to treasonable offence when advocated and that explains why people considers it bravery for any individual to challenge several rotten agenda.

 In recent days, sports commands brief mention in the media simply because the country’s football is in hiatus and the politics of the day are so sexy for the media. Examples include Sanusi imbroglio, Boko Haram finger pointing, PDP implosion, APC calculations, Okonjo-Iweala resignation or not.

These issues are simply preventing and impeding coverage about sports, although, Angie Taylor, the American hired recently, noted that she did not come to Nigeria with magic wand to reverse the rotten trend about Nigeria’s sports. The question that ought to have been asked, what does she brings to the table that cannot be handled by others including Nigerians at about $200,000 salary while athletes are gagged and caged at slave camp in Abuja for about 50cents per day? Is this right? Angie’s got freedom of speech while the country’s athletes are simply muscled like a pitbull. It must be noted that athletes are not really forced to be enslaved rather they arrived there as a way out of poverty that is preventing them in achieving greater heights in their chosen past times.

Sports Minister Bolaji Abdullahi on his part continues to be out of limelight due to precarious political situation that he finds himself. Of course he is currently in lame duck position without any political card to play and more importantly, Mr. President has been assertive these days than usual following Mr. Sanusi imbroglio. As to sports federations, they are all trying to reposition themselves based on this writer’s suggestion on what sports governance is all about and of course, they lacked such mandate based on their governing instruments.

 Way forward

Athletes ought to be catered for - wherever and whenever. Slave (athletes) camps and rules of gagging athletes must be abolished rather it’s the officials that ought to be gagged for making senseless and discriminatory utterances, specifically, favoring a specific state over others contrary to the country’s constitution. ONE NIGERIA I was told and that’s still valid as at now.

I rest.

Dr. Rashid A. Balogun, CPA, LLB(Hons), LLM(London)

The Federation of International Football Associations (FIFA) has barred Spanish football club, Barcelona from selling or buying players over the next two transfer windows.

The development is especially a huge blow to the goalkeeping department, as first-choice keeper, Victor Valdes has announced his decision to walk away on a free transfer when his contract expires at the end of the season, while the deal for his heir apparent, Borussia Monchengladbach’s Marc-Andre Stegen, has only been agreed in principle. It is likely that the deal will no longer go ahead, courtesy of the ban.

According to FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee, Barcelona was found guilty of breaching the rules relating to acquisition of under-age players. Spanish Football Association (RFEF) was also found guilty of allowing such illegal deals.

In addition to the ban and the ultimatum to regularise the deals involving 10 underage players acquired by the club within 90 days, FIFA also slammed a fine of $509,000 on the La Liga giants.

Coming less than 24 hours after the club’s 1-1 draw with Atletico Madrid in the Champions League quarter-final first leg, the sanction was announced in a statement released by FIFA after an investigation that began in 2013.

“The Disciplinary Committee regarded the infringements as serious and decided to sanction the club with a transfer ban at both national and international level for two complete and consecutive transfer periods,” the FIFA statement read.

On its part, the Spanish Football Federation was ordered to pay a fine of $563,698 for its role in the deal. FIFA also gave them one year to modify the rules concerning international transfers concerning minors.

FIFA’s rule on the matter is that a player must be 18 years old to be transferred, except in special cases where the minor’s parents relocates, the relocation takes place within the European Union if a player is aged between 16 and 18, or the player’s home is less than 50km from the national border being crossed.

But on looking into Barcelona’s transfer activities between 2009 and 2013, the club was caught by FIFA’s web-based Transfer Matching System, which became mandatory for all international transfers of professional male footballers in October 2010.

Earlier in February 2013, FIFA had banned six Barcelona youth team players ― Lee Seung-Woo, Paik Seung-Ho and Jang Gyeol-Hee from South Korea, Patrice Sousia of Cameroon, France’s Theo Chendri and Bobby Adekanye, a Nigerian-Dutch teenager ― from competitive games.

A similar woe had befallen English Premiere League’s Chelsea Football Club in 2010 when FIFA banned the club from transfer deals over the signing of French youngster Gael Kakuta. The ruling was later overturned after Chelsea reached an agreement with the player’s former club Lens.

 

A sum of N2.08 billion has been budgeted for the preparation and participation of Super Eagles of Nigeria at the Brazil 2014 FIFA World Cup, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) said on Monday.

Speaking while defending the federation’s budget before the Federal House of Representatives Committee on Sports, NFF Secretary-General, Musa Amadu explained that a grant of N1. 25bn has been secured from the Federal Government, while the deficit of N829.89m would be sourced from alternative donors.

The budget reveals that each Super Eagle would receive a cumulative $107,500 as winning bonus should the team win the tournament, while Coach Stephen Keshi would receive $215,000.

Each player would get $10,000 for the three matches in the first round, while the head coach would receive double the amount. For the knock-out stages, each player’s pay rises to $12,500 in the Round-of-16, $15,000 in the quarterfinal and $20,000 in the semi-final.

The assistant coaches, team doctor, physiotherapist, welfare officer as well as secretary would receive different amounts as winning bonus, same as the psychologist, media officer, team security officer, match analyst and equipment manager.

Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Sports, Godfrey Gaiya praised NFF for its recent successes in football, and assured of the committee’s cooperation towards raising the needed N800 million.

“I have always assured Nigerians that funding for our football should not be seen as a problem”, he said.

“We have a president that is sensitive to this sector and he has said so time without number that they should make their preparation. You can see that there is a grant for the World Cup outside the NFF’s main budget and that grant is a proposal. The moment we go beyond the round of 16, certainly more money will be given”.

President Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday approved the release of N50m to the Nigerian Football Supporters Club in order to motivate them to participate at the Brazil 2014 FIFA World Cup.

He announced the approval on Wednesday at the Presidential Villa during his decoration as Grand Patron of the Supporters’ Club, which held just before the weekly meeting of the Federal Executive Council (FEC).

Jonathan praised members of the Supporters’ Club for their support to the national teams, saying the money will motivate the supporters to further support the team in Brazil.

“We need to encourage you to go to Brazil. We will give you a token. We will start with N50 million and we will talk to some of our senior boys to support you”, he said.

He dedicated his decoration as Grand Patron to all members of his cabinet and all Nigerians of goodwill, and also pledged that being a keen supporter of all sports, he would be with the team and the supporters in Brazil.

President-General of the Nigeria Football Supporters’ Club Worldwide, Dr. Rafiu Ladipo revealed plans of the club to travel to Brazil with 1,000 members, and also joined the campaign for team coach, Stephen Keshi to have free hands over the composition of the technical staff.

“Our plan is to go with 1,000 supporters to the World Cup. Five hundred will go from Nigeria while the remaining 500 will come from other countries”, he said, adding that the Eagles would qualify for the semi-finals at least, with the support of everyone.

“Steven Keshi has done very well, but he still needs two or three people to help him read the game because he cannot see everything by himself”, he said. “But nobody should force down anybody on him. He should be allowed to make his decision”.

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