NFF election: To be or not to be?

Football’s version of the popular but now rested TV soap opera, Fuji House of Commotion – the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) – will on Tuesday in Warri, Delta state, elect a new president and executive committee and put an end to the power tussle that took the country to the brink of a FIFA ban.

The 44-member congress of the NFF will determine who will lead the organisation for the next four years among the seven candidates vying for the toughest job in African football.

But it seems the election ‘’war’’ in Warri won’t end the crisis rocking the game in Nigeria.

The federation was served a notification that the court would commence contempt proceedings if the soccer body conducts the September 30 board election in Warri.

The notice of contempt was pasted at the entrance of the football secretariat in Abuja.

Aminu Maigari, outgoing president of NFF; Musa Amadu, secretary-general; Tammy Danagogo, minister of sports; and the 36 state FA chairmen, including FCT, were mentioned in the form.

According to NAN, the notice with an inscription, “notice of consequences of disobedience to order of court”, warned the defendants that they risked imprisonment if they disobeyed the court order.

“Take notice that unless you obey the directions contained in this order, you will be guilty of contempt of court and will be liable to be committed to prison,” the notice read.

On Monday, a federal high court sitting in Jos, Plateau, had granted the request of plaintiffs in the ongoing NFF leadership crisis to serve the notice.

Yahaha Adama and Obinna Ogba, board members of the Chris Giwa-led board of the NFF, had obtained an injunction on September 19 stopping Tuesday’s board election.

The plaintiffs had argued that the Maigari-led board fixed a fresh election after an election that brought in the Giwa-led board.

But according to a report, the election will still hold at the Golden Tulip Hotel, Warri, despite the court injunction served the 37 FA associations as “football stakeholders who trooped into the oil city yesterday were not bothered by the fresh court case”.

In the report, many of the delegates expressed optimism that the federation was in the right direction to hold elections as directed by world soccer governing body, FIFA.

“We’re covered by FIFA. We cannot afford to allow very few selfish Nigerians destroy the only sport that gives Nigerians joy”, one of the delegates said.