NFF Congress pass vote of no confidence in Pinnick-led Board

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) An­nual General Assembly Congress, yesterday in Abuja, passed vote of confidence on the Amaju-Pinnick led NFF board, with the completion of their meeting.

The congress at the Trans­corp Hilton Hotel, Abuja yester­day, held its 71st Annual General Assembly, which usually ends the football year calendar in the country.

Among the progress enumer­ated by the congress during the year, Nigeria recently won the FIFA U-17 World Cup for the fifth time, in Chile, while the U-23 National Team won the Africa U-23 Cup of Nations in Senegal.

Also, the U-23 team has just qualified for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, just as the Super Eagles B has qualified for next year’s African Nations Championships and the Falcon­ets have qualified for the 2016 U-20 Women’s World Cup.

The Super Eagles have pro­gressed into the group stage of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Af­rican series, and the NFF has completed a round of elite, over­seas capacity–enhancing pro­grams for referees, coaches and administrators.

Commending the efforts of the NFF to take Nigeria football to new heights, Sports Minister, Solomon Dalung charged the Board to continue to admin­ister football with justice and fairness, and to ensure pay­ment of outstanding salaries of Coaches being owed, and of any outstanding bonuses and allowances due to any group of the national teams, before the Christmas celebrations.

“The crises in Nigeria foot­ball have all been erased by the recent successes, and I therefore earnestly urge you all to work in unity and for the good of Nige­ria football and the Nigeria na­tion.

“I have been wanting to ask this question for a very long time: Why do we have crises in Nigeria football? There is no in­stitution or movement that does not experience crises here and again. But crises should never be perpetual. The successes we are experiencing have erased these crises.”

Also speaking at the occasion, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Youth and Sports, Distinguished Senator Obinna Ogba lauded the commitment and focus of the Amaju Pinnick administration, while applaud­ing the recent triumphs of the U-17 and U-23 National Teams in major championships.