National Sports Commission Faces Legal Threat Over Alleged Role in Disputed Cricket Federation Elections

National Sports Commission Faces Legal Threat Over Alleged Role in Disputed Cricket Federation Elections

By Niyi Busari 

The National Sports Commission (NSC) has come under legal scrutiny following allegations of complicity in an allegedly unlawful electoral process within the Nigeria Cricket Federation (NCF), BSNSports.com.ng reports. 

A group of aggrieved stakeholders has issued a pre-action notice to the NSC, accusing it of aiding and abetting electoral malpractice ahead of the 2025 NCF elections.

The stakeholders, who claim they were unjustly disqualified from participating in the forthcoming elections, have retained legal counsel to challenge what they describe as an unconstitutional and orchestrated attempt to entrench the current NCF leadership.

According to the pre-action notice dated September 8, 2025, the NSC is accused of facilitating a process that enables the incumbent NCF President, Uyi Akpata, to allegedly influence the electoral process to his advantage—particularly by setting up an electoral committee likely to favor his continued stay in office.

“The incumbent president is attempting to constitute an electoral committee that would conduct an election which may return him to power. This is akin to being a judge in one’s own case, which is fundamentally unacceptable in law,” the notice reads.

Lack of Transparency in Constitution Approval

Central to the controversy is the NSC’s decision to grant the NCF permission to use its internal constitution as the legal framework for the 2025 elections, despite questions regarding its legitimacy and lack of formal approval by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

While the NSC has maintained that the NCF constitution was sanctioned by the ICC, investigative findings by BSN Sports contradict this claim. The ICC, through comments from President Uyi Akpata himself, has stated that it does not interfere in the electoral processes of its Member Associations, as these are considered internal matters.

After several messages to the Secretary of NCF Mohammed Sanni, and the NSC, no formal documentation has been produced to confirm ICC approval, and stakeholders argue that the same version of the NCF constitution was deemed invalid during the 2021 elections, a situation that prevented former president Professor Yahaya Okonya from re-contesting.

Notably, Okonya’s attempt to contest under the banner of the African Cricket Association in 2021 was rejected—yet similar circumstances have reportedly not hindered Akpata from seeking re-election in 2025 using the same umbrella.

Allegations of Pre-Determined Outcome

The NSC, via a letter dated August 12, 2025, authorized the NCF to proceed with elections scheduled for September 19 and 20, using its contested constitution. Critics argue that this decision effectively rubber-stamped a process with a predetermined outcome, raising concerns about fairness and transparency.

“This election appears to have been concluded even before it has taken place,” one stakeholder told BSN Sports under condition of anonymity.

The letter from the stakeholders’ legal team accuses the NSC of conspiring with the NCF executive to “misapply constitutional provisions” in a manner designed to preserve the status quo and eliminate meaningful opposition.

Call for Intervention

The pre-action notice serves as a final warning to the NSC to halt all proceedings and correct the alleged procedural anomalies or face legal action. The stakeholders contend that failure to do so could lead to “anarchy and breakdown of order” within Nigerian cricket governance.

With the elections one-day away, all eyes are now on the NSC and whether it will respond to the growing calls for transparency, fairness, and adherence to both national and international best practices in sports administration.