The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) on Tuesday in Abuja said there has been no election into the executive committee of the Anambra State Football Association.
Ibrahim Gusau, a member of the federation’s Executive Committee, made this disclosure in a statement released by Ademola Olajire, the federation’s Director of Communications.
“What took place in Anambra on Monday and which some stakeholders have dubbed `an election’ was a charade of very low grade, and the NFF will never recognise such a sham.
“That was an act of brigandage and the NFF fully dissociates itself from it,’’ he said.
Gusau said the Electoral Committee had sent to the NFF a letter which it received from the Anambra State COVID-19 Task Force.
“The letter had requested that the elections into the State FA and the Local Football Councils (LFCs) be postponed, in line with the situation in the country, since the ban on sports activities and mass gatherings was still alive.
“This same Electoral Committee issued a press statement on Monday, informing the general public that the elections would no longer hold.
“It had also expressed regrets about the inconvenience the sudden postponement may have caused the candidates, delegates, observers, stakeholders and the general public.
“In view of this situation, it is incomprehensible how anyone could have gone ahead with the charade they are calling `election’.
“One begins to wonder who actually conducted the so-called election,” he said.
Gusau, who is also Chairman of Chairmen of state Football Associations (FAs), went further to say that the act was an affront on the state government.
“This is something the NFF will never be part of. The Anambra State COVID-19 Task Force had made it clear that there should be no such gathering.
“It is irksome, and let it be said without ambiguity that the NFF does not recognise such a sham and it cannot stand.”
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that a group of football stakeholders had gone on to conduct an election in Awka on Monday, in defiance of the state government directive.
The election had produced the incumbent state FA chairman, Ifeanyi Uba, as winner of the chairmanship position.
The state government had asked that the elections be postponed in view of the COVID-19 protocols, while the Elections Committee had obliged this request and postponed the elections.
(NAN)