Sponsorship: Don't Devalue NPFL With 'Slave Contracts' -Jalla

Sponsorship: Don't Devalue NPFL With 'Slave Contracts' - Jalla

Ibrahim Lateef 

Harrison Jalla has charged the Nigeria Premier Football League board led by Hon. Gbenga Elegbeleye not the see the stakes of the domestic league fall to a comatose by accepting 'slave sponsorship contracts', BSNSports.com.ng reports.

This comes, as the rumour mill agog that a certain Chinese company in conjunction with Nigerian businessmen with some treacherous Club Owners and Board Members of the NPFL are piling undue pressure on the Nigeria Football Federation President Ibrahim Gusau to accept a slave contract of 10 years duration in the first instance for the acquisition of part of NPFL broadcast right.     

According to Jalla: "Let's remind the Hon. Gbenga Elegbeleye led NPFL board that some stakeholders including many League Writers laid down their lives to wrestle the NPFL out of the suffocating grip of the defunct League Management Company (LMC) with the unflinching support of the former Minister of Sports Chief Sunday Dare.           

"And more so the NPFL Board should be properly guided to understand that the Players Bloc are co-owners of all the commercial properties and rights of the NPFL.           

"From all indications the NPFL and GTI partnership is work in progress, it would be foolhardy at this stage to rush into any under the table slave contract.           

"What is the value of the NPFL broadcast right at the time Supersport pulled out? That should be the start point for fresh negotiation as the NPFL/GTI partnership progresses.                 

"The main plank of the NPFL/GTI partnership is to avoid the pitfalls of slave contracts and keep the NPFL running until all its properties are disposed off at the appropriate commercial value to ensure financial independence of all the NPFL clubs."

Stressing further, "We cannot afford to go back to the past where personal interest is the order of the day.   The Hon. Gbenga Elegbeleye led board must be given maximum support by all stakeholders to continue their good job."