Open Letter To Former 1st Vice CAF President Amaju Pinnick

Open Letter To President Amaju Pinnick

I am not doing this because open letters have become the vogue. Mine is because, after several personal notes and advice to you our dear NFF President, it appears all have fallen into deaf ears. You have not taken any steps to put the wrongs right nor sought the help of those who can help you out. In short, you have become an Island unto yourself.

According to the scriptures, there are ways that may seem right in the eyes of men but there lies destruction. I recall your modest success as the Chairman of Delta State Sport Council.

So, when the tenure of Alhaji Aminu Maigari was coming to an end, we knew the kind of gang-up and framings that made it impossible for Maigari to run for a second term. Bringing another Northerner to take over from Maigari was not an attractive option, and hence the ambition of Shehu Dikko went up in flames. Till date, Dikko still felt he was stabbed in the back to favour you. The venue was shifted to Warri to give you ‘home advantage’.

The forays of Ambassador Christopher Giwa to truncate the Warri elections were all blocked to pave a smooth ride for you. Of course, the other candidates against you in Warri were all brow-beaten to submission.

Everyone thought a new kid on the block will propel the NFF to new heights and that the era of proper accountability will be introduced. How wrong were most of us that till date, some of the candidates in that race still see us as betrayers?

Mr Pinnick you paid back your supporters with a bad coin. Your tenure commenced with vendetta against all those that helped you to climb to your exalted position. You became too pre-occupied with self-aggrandizement. You thought that the way to remain at the top was to destroy all those that have genuine interest in promoting the game of football in Nigeria. You rendered election into the various league boards null and void.

Instead of encouraging democracy at the league boards’ level, you altered the norms to appointing your lackeys to chair the league boards, so as to stop by all means, men and women who are poised with credible credentials and program to revive the leagues and hence promote the good of the game. You appointed men and women with questionable competence. Removing the Secretary of the NFF in the person of Barrister Ahmadu Musa for an incapable Mohammed Sanusi dragged the growth of the game to ridicule. No wonder even records of players sanctions cannot accurately be kept, leading to Nigeria being sanctioned on our way to Russia 2018.

Your becoming the President of NFF was supposed to make you Nigeria’s ambassador at all football politics. The directive of the Federal Government of Nigeria was for you to vote for Isa Hayatou to remain as CAF president. Again, you betrayed even that enormous responsibility by not only voting for Ahmad Ahmad but anchoring his campaigns to spite the federal government of Nigeria. Surely, you succeeded in bringing Ahmad Ahmad on board and for good measures; you were appointed 1st Vice President of CAF, with several other appointments to juicy committees both in CAF and FIFA. But you see Mr President; the triumph of evil over good is temporary. Your disgrace in Egypt at the just concluded AFCON was a pointer that pride comes before a fall. Before Egypt, you had become more of a ‘Hollywood’ star rather than running football in Nigeria.

With your humiliation now sir, it is hoped that you will humble yourself good enough to sit down and do the needful in giving our football the desired direction of bringing all Nigerians with ideas to help you. You will need first to honour the courts to clear your name of the myriad of corruption charges hovering around your neck. Using international engagements and travels to avoid appearances are over. The recklessness in the way and manner money is spent under your leadership of the NFF must come to an end. The largesse won by the Super Eagles at AFCON, 2019 must be properly accounted for.

Finally, you must know that before CAF and FIFA there is NFF; whose leadership I must confess, you have not handled fairly. Recourse to buying the Congress to pass a vote of confidence on you after the Egypt fiasco, is an insult to our collective resolve as a nation.

Credit: leadership.ng