Buhari orders NFF to hold election in September, amend statutes

President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to hold an election for its executive committee in September.

The president gave the directive in a letter dated June 17 and addressed to Amaju Pinnick, NFF president.

The tenure of the current administration of the NFF will end in September.

In the letter, the president asked Pinnick to commence process that will lead to conduct of new elections into the federation’s executive committee.

He also directed Pinnick to amend the NFF statuses to include other stakeholders who had hitherto been “disenfranchised or denied equal representation in the NFF congress.”

The president called on the NFF leadership to ensure that the amended statutes reflect the national yearnings, aspirations and peculiarities of Nigeria as a sovereign nation.

Buhari added that such amendment should not fail to align with the principles and objectives of football as set by the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA).

The president also reiterated his administration’s support for football development in the country.

Issues around the NFF statutes have lingered and continued to elicit concerns among relevant stakeholders.

It is understood that until they are sorted, the outgoing administration cannot call a congress where election guidelines would be drawn and the polling date would be announced.