Nigerian football stakeholders have rejected speculation that FIFA could appoint a Normalization Committee to run the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), amid claims that president Ibrahim Musa Gusau might be removed and warnings against restoring officials blamed for the sport’s deterioration.
Ebi Egbe, chief executive of Monimichelle Sports, said the country’s football needed a new beginning and urged authorities not to reintroduce individuals linked to its present difficulties.
“Whatever decision the chairman is considering, please do not return rejected figures who contributed substantially to the crisis now facing Nigerian football,” Egbe said.
He added that Nigerians would strongly oppose any effort to bring back the same administrators, calling instead for credible, capable and committed stakeholders to lead the rebuilding process.
“The country will firmly resist recycling the same people while hoping for a different result. Nigerian football requires new thinking, new leadership, fresh professionals and a different path,” Egbe said.
In a separate development, an unnamed football administrator dismissed reports that former NFF president Amaju Pinnick could head a possible Normalization Committee, arguing that Pinnick’s earlier tenure at the federation had been unsuccessful.
Asked whether such an appointment might follow instructions from FIFA president Gianni Infantino, the administrator rejected that possibility, saying there would be “no need” for the move and challenging the significance of Pinnick’s record in office.
The administrator instead put forward former NFF presidents Sani Lulu and Aminu Maigari as more suitable choices, pointing to their performances while leading the federation.
FIFA has yet to confirm plans for a Normalization Committee at the NFF. Gusau and Pinnick have also made no public comment on the claims, leaving both the reported intervention and any possible timetable for a change of leadership unverified.
Attention is now building towards the NFF Elective Congress, which is set for 27 September in Lafia and is expected to determine the federation’s next leadership.
