Why Jonathan must intervene to save us - Lulu

This headache called football again?

Former President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Abdullahi Sani Lulu, may have in a bid to find a political solution to the on-going prosecution of the football quartet which is handled by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) wrote President Goodluck Jonathan wherein he accused his predecessor of mismanaging N2.8b his board left behind. 

He had written the President on the 1^st March, 2012. Part of the letter read: “We were most prudent in the running of the affairs of the NFF and we made personal sacrifices so as to invest our resources in viable projects that will bring visible changes to the football sector in Nigeria. The record of our financial management was never witnessed in the history of the football organization in Nigeria and we stand to defend this record anytime,” he wrote.

According to Lulu, “I devoted my best talents to the good management of football in the country. Indeed, from the unfortunate and unprecedented decline in our football today, it is obvious that those who orchestrated our removal from office had no good plans for the country.

“Nigeria football is at its lowest ebb but all those who vilified us unjustifiably are silent. During our four years tenure, we left a comfortable balance sheet, won gold and silver from the U-17 World Cup in Korea and Nigeria respectively and got Nigeria to the quarter-finals of the 2008 Nations Cup. Also, we qualified for the World Cup.”

“It is obvious that we have suffered grave injustice. We were perhaps misunderstood or the clandestine group that had always controlled the affairs of our football to their selfish advantage was not happy with our independent and forthright position on the administration of the game and as a result, they smeared us at any opportunity.

“We acted with courage for the future of football and did not want to compromise our vision  and principle even when it was clear to us that those against us had great reach in their unjustified plot. Their action is now history but its aftermath has taken a great toll on the standard of football in our beloved country,” he concluded.

The Lulu letters to the President

I have received so many text messages, SMS messages and calls from those I know and those I do not know. One straight line is that tomorrow is too long a time to wait. People want the letters as quick as now.

I then out of respect for these voices had to get back online and post the copy of the letter that Sani Abdullahi Lulu wrote the President.

I hope nerves will rest and sighs will be heaved.

Have a nice read as tomorrow has been dragged back to now in a democratic  format.

Thanks for these concerns.

Save Nigerian football from Maigari, Lulu begs GEJ

*He squandered N2.8b in one year!

Former President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Sani Abdullahi Lulu has released a bombshell revealing so many issues and details amongst which is the fact that the present board led by Alhaji Aminu Maigari squandered N2.8b in one year outside the N3.012b from the Appropriation account by government.

NFF Scribe,Musa Amadu. Where is the N2.8b?

Lulu in a letter he wrote to the nation’s President, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, revealed that “it is very imperative for me to note at this stage that despite all the allegations against us, we left in our accounts a record total of N2.8b.”

According to him, “cash of N320m and $700,000 were in the NFF accounts in UBA and Afribank. FIFA’s sponsorship money of $5.5m was lodged in the LOC account in First Bank. $1m for FAP project and $400,000 for FIFA Goal Project was set aside in FIFA account in Zurich preparatory to its utilisation for the construction of NFF headquarters.”

Lulu, who was impeached alongside three other personalities: Mr. Amanze Uchegbulam and Mr. Taiwo Ogunjobi alongside the former Secretary General, Dr. Bolaji Ojo-Oba are standing trial in a prosecution conducted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

He added that a “total gross revenue of $8m allocated to the NFF for the participation of Nigeria in the World Cup” is also there to be accounted for. He wrote: “the amount was being credited by FIFA to NFF at the time of our impeachment was contrived.”

NB: Watch out on this page for Dr. Ekeji’s role, ‘we are cleaner than Maigari’s board’ and further in-depth revelations in the letter.

IAAF denies sanctioning AFN Warri Grand prix

AFN President, Solomon Ogba

The world governing body for Athletics, the IAAF, has denied giving Nigeria any permit to organise a Grand Prix and clarified that to the best of her knowledge no athlete is still being owed prize monies of the 2009 Abuja Grand Prix yet some foreign athletes who competed in the meet are yet to earn their sweat value till now.

Gabriel Okon, who said he is the “meet organiser” is one of the assistant coaches deployed by the AFN to the American camp for the Olympics. He sent out the invitation for the 2012 Grand Prix in Warri scheduled for the 14^th June, 2012 where he revealed the following events would be competed. In the Men’s category, 100m, 400m, 110m hurdles, 1,500m, 3,000m steeple chase, Long jump, Javelin, 4x100m and 4x400m.

He also revealed the event to be competed for in the women’s category to be 100m, 400m, 100m hurdles, 800m, 400m hurdles, High Jump, 4x100m and 4x400m.

What alsobaffles one is that the e-mail address used to send out this invitation is not the official one of the AFN. It was a personal e-mail thus, raising questions as to why Okon, who is not a staff or the Secretary of the AFN should use a personal mail to conduct official business.

In a response to inquiries made to her by e-mail by this reporter, Mónica Gómez Fernández who is the Manager Permit Meetings of the IAAF’s Competitions Department wrote: “No Meeting in Nigeria has been granted the IAAF permit for this season.”

On the 2009 Grand Prix in Abuja, she explained that it was an Area Permit Meeting. We are aware that nevertheless Pierre Weiss (the retired predecessor of Fernandez) followed up the unpaid cases of those athletes that competed in Abuja’09 and provided us with proof of their economic agreement with the Organisers.”

To our understanding there are no longer any outstanding payments from 2009 however I am copying the Nigerian Federation and the Confédération Africaine d'Athlétisme (CAA) on this email should they have anything else to add.”

The question remains then, where did the prize monies of the athletes whose dues are stilloutstanding hiding? Who is keeping the money since 2009? Nigeria has remained painted black as a nation of crooks by this act.

NFF used police to abduct, detain me - Jalla

*‘List of 10 to be eliminated revealed to me’

Can these be true?

President of the National Association of Nigerian Footballers (NANF) Harrison Jalla has explained how the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) organised the use of men of the Nigeria Police to invade his Lagos office to abduct and detain him using a complainant he had never met to frame up allegations against him.

Speaking in a telephone interview fromhis house yesterday, Jalla who had been the arrowhead of opposition to the board of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) said, “I was in my office when the Policemen arrived. I was abducted and denied any means of communication, taken to away and detained.”

When my arrest was effected, the complainant who I had never had anything to do with neither have I ever met him pulled a call through to Ademola Olajire, the NFF’s Chief Media Officer, detailing how I was arrested. That was the point I realised it was the NFF that organised the latest arrest and charges.

I was detained by the police and denied access to my lawyers or relations. I was however released on Saturday night. The arrest and detention has shown how much new level of desperation the NFF people are bringing into this matter. This is the third time they are using the Police as an instrument of oppression wrongly and unjustly.

Asked what will be his latest reaction to this, he said, “I will respond accordingly in due course. One thing is certain, I an not going to be daunted by all these. You know what? The entire arrest and detention was not incidented by the police meaning it was likely an illegal operation. You will get further details in days”, he promised.

Earlier in the interview, he revealed that, “they had planned to use hitmen to eliminate 10 of us. I am one of the 10. It was that I was battling with that Friday when my office was invaded. The list include some prominent persons who are regarded as disturbing their peace. My sources had told me the list of the people on the elimination scheme. I won’t release the list now. I, however, promise to make the list available to you in a matter of one or two days.”

Baribote: The pearl we all refused to celebrate

For those who do not like satire will fight and misrepresent me here. Let us dance together in this show first. So many people are so naïve in this great nation of ours. I just discovered how as a people we don’t have a very rich history. No wonder history is no more taught in our primary, secondary and tertiary institutions.

We have always lined up to celebrate the wrong people. It’s a big shame. I stumbled on some records again (as usual?) and found out that Chief Victor Rumson Baribote is one man who should be in the Guinness Book of Records by now. This is one man every sensible person in the game of football should be idolizing.
We should all have been mesmerizing God for giving us such a special talent in Baribote. A most unique personality never seen in the aura and environment of the game in Nigeria whose records will be so difficult to beat for a long time.
He was born on the 10^th April 1978. Sadly enough, I, like so many Nigerians did not realize this lest we should have hired drums to celebrate his 34^th birthday last month since we are now in May.
You can even wonder how poor and miserly are the 20 professional clubs in the NPL such that none of them could even buy advert space either on radio, television or newspaper to congratulate Nigeria’s ever youngest NPL chairman.
At least, with Sports minister, Bolaji Abdullahi’s peace pact that is reigning supreme in the game for now, which has obliterated the judgment of a whole Federal High Court. Therefore, Baribote can still by virtue of these be referred to as the sitting chairman of the NPL except that his board members have gone underground due, probably, to the court order. That makes his a one-man board.
My take is, going down memory lane, except if my records need further doctoring, our Baribote played for Kwara Bombers FC of Ilorin. Follow my lead.
Late Chief Adolphus Dubem Okafor bought the former Exide Fc of Ibadan which was renamed as Kwara United in 1997 during the tenure of then Colonel Peter Asum Mbu Ogar, the military administrator of Kwara State.
By official club records, Kwara Bombers FC of Ilorin existed between 1990 and 1996. Baribote played for two seasons in the club. Assuming he played in the last two years of the club’s existence (which is also contrary to my assumption), that means we can agree he played in the 1994/95 and the 1995/1996 season. It was on record that the club went down on relegation that season.
Here I come. Let’s shout Hurray for the great Baribote! Go back to his age. He played for Kwara Bombers as a 14 year old!
Two, he obtained his school certificate in 2007! Yes now. He claimed to have sat for the examination in Community Secondary School, Okodia in Bayelsa State. Checks with WAEC showed that no school existed on the accredited list of the year for the June or the November/December editions of the examination. Except probably, it was NABTEC or NECO that he actually sat for.
Three, the oath of office he swore to and signed upon the election into the NPL on the 8^th April 2011 was in his own handwriting as a “Board member”. There must have been another election in the dream world that satisfied all the laid down processes that brought him in as “chairman”
All hail the magical fronds of footbrawl in Nigeria. Long live these frauds!