YEARS of FIFA’s deceit has finally caught up with it in its relations with
Nigeria, a country that FIFA treats with the lowest standards when it
matters in implementing its statutes. For decades, Nigerians have appealed
for FIFA to intervene in government’s wholesale administration of football
in Nigeria.

FIFA hid behind its fingers, refusing to admit that Decree 101 that ran
Nigerian football from 1992 and still exists as a Nigerian law was
interference. In summary, this law says the Minister of Sports has the
final say in administration of football in Nigeria.

It might just be the law that the Minister of Sports could rest on in
effecting the changes that the Federal Government want in Nigeria
football. FIFA lived with this law for 18 years and cannot suddenly reject
it.

Concerned Nigerians cried to FIFA about this. The same Sepp Joseph
Blatter, whether as Secretary-General or FIFA President knew about Decree
101. What did he do then?

Talks of FIFA banning Nigeria or expelling it from football have been on
the lips of corrupt, incompetent and lazy football administrators whose
only response to charges that they should lead the country through better
standards has been to wave the FIFA ban as if this country cannot survive
without football.

FIFA is unconcerned about the incompetence of the Nigeria Football
Association represents. It remains deaf to allegations of theft of public
funds, money that belongs to Nigerians. FIFA is not bothered that the NFA
wantonly disregards the same Statutes that FIFA claims government is
violating when it asks the NFA operates with a measure of decency.

Does FIFA know how much the Nigerian government spends (wastes) on
football annually? Does it know that the NFA refuses to democratise its
operations?

Would FIFA say it has not received complaints that the State Football
Associations in Nigeria are not elected but appointed contrary to Article
21 (5) of the NFA Statutes.

According to Article 21 (5), “State Executive Committee: a) Each State
Football Association shall be composed of twelve (12) persons, four (4)
elected from each senatorial district made up as follows: Chairman, 2 Vice
Chairmen, 9 Ordinary Members b) All the above officers shall be elected at
the Annual General Assembly of the State Football Association”.
No State meets these criteria as State FAs are appointed, not elected,
and do not reflect the geo-political and democratic opportunities of the
NFA Statutes. The NFA Board which FIFA recognises, apparently based on the
Statutes, is inherently illegal. Complaints to FIFA about these matters
are ignored, probably an indication of the opaque way FIFA operates.

Corruption and a huge does of incompetence have ruined Nigerian football.
FIFA encouraged the ruination of Nigerian football over the years by
refusing to pay attention to the complaints that flowed regularly into its
offices in Zurich. Its concern over Nigeria, in this instance, is that a
proper investigation of the comatose state of the game in Nigeria would
indict FIFA.

Right from the cases of over-aged players that NFA officials promote, to
the scandals of thefts and undemocratic tendencies, FIFA would issue
warnings that government was interfering.

By our laws, the Nigerian government can ask the NFA to account for public
money it spends. FIFA calls this interference. The $8 million earned for
qualifying for the World Cup is not NFA’s money, it belongs to Nigerians
who expect that the NFA should account for it. FIFA also sees this as
interference.

Was FIFA not embarrassed by the poor standards of local organisation that
attended the FIFA U-17 Championship in Nigeria last year under the
superintendence of the NFA? What did it do about the construction of
pitches that floated at the drop of the rains? Or the low quality of
services availed the teams?

Blatter and his colleagues in Zurich might not have heard that the
competence of the NFA led Nigeria to pay a fine of $125,000 for breaching
accommodation contract in South Africa for the Eagles. Why did FIFA not
query Nigerian officials for ignoring its official World Cup hotel for the
Eagles?

FIFA says the NFA election should go ahead, as usual, ignoring complaints
about policies that the NFSA adopted to exclude other contestants from the
polls. Some of the measures were the deadlines set for the collection and
submission of forms, all of which were to be concluded while the
responsible football officials were in South Africa for the World Cup.
FIFA rated the brazenness of this move adequately democratic.

The Federal Government should be more far reaching in implementing this
decision. Measures to ensure that football is better organised must be
effected in the two year duration. One area that should get attention is
the re-structuring of the system for players to access the national teams,
especially the junior teams, which should be nurseries, but which corrupt
NFA officials fill with men on the verge of retirement.

It is expected that at the end of the self ban, Nigerian football would
have improved. Hopefully too, FIFA should have cleansed itself of
interference, through negligence, of Nigerian football.

Threats of expulsion from FIFA should not stop the Federal Government from
rescuing Nigerians from the vice grip of a football administration that is
so soaked in incompetence that it gleefully led Nigeria to its worst
Nations Cup performance in 26 at the 2008 edition in Ghana and while it
was at it, its Chairman ensured that his posters were pasted in Kumasi.

Nigerians surely deserve better standards of football administration than
the mediocrity that FIFRA supported over the years with Decree 101.

Just imagine FIFA, dem beat us, we carry our ball, we no play again. Na by force?