NFF elections hold today in Warri •I never withdrew —Yola •I will transform Nigerian football —Uchegbulam
Posted by admin | 10 years ago | 3,680 times
ALL is set for the elections into the board of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), which come up today in Warri, Delta State.
Ahead of today’s elections, there was a debate on Monday for the seven candidates vying for the NFF presidency, which gave them a last-minute opportunity to sell their candidacy to the voting delegates.
The debate, organised by the electoral committee of the NFF, in conjunction with the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN), took place in the hall of the Golden Tulip, Warri.
Six out of the seven candidates participated in the debate. Shehu Dikko was absent. The debate was already underway by the time Amaju Pinnick arrived at the debate venue.
Meanwhile, a stakeholder in the Nigerian football family was not recognised by the organisers as he was not given an accommodation at the Golden Tulip, where accommodation arrangement was made for all state FA chairmen and members of the outgoing board of the NFF.
The stakeholder in question (name withheld), does not function in any of these two categories and he eventually had to pay from his pocket to secure himself an accommodation.
One of the aspirants Alhaji Abba Yola, has debunked the rumour going the rounds that he has withdrawn from the polls.
“How can I withdraw from the election having gone this far and at this stage of my career? I won’t be contesting if I am not sure of victory. I am the joker and the most competent among the aspirants. It is not true that I have withdrawn and I think the speculation is the handiwork of my detractors and especially enemies of Nigerian football.
“I am the messiah needed to rejuvenate this country’s football administration and make it free of all rancours it has witnessed over the years. I can assure all Nigerians that if elected, I will dignify the office of NFF president and make it an enviable position. I stand for justice, truth and accountability,” Yola said.
Also, former NFF vice president, Chief Amanze Uchegbulam believes he has the wherewithal to lead the NFF board given his wealth of experience.
“I am aspiring to lead new NFF board if given the mandate. I have a lot of ideas that can transform Nigerian football. I thank God for what I have been able to contribute to football in this country in the last 20 years.
“Aside from being involved in foorball administration, I also run a club in Owerri. We have been running Imo FA without any government’s grant. My adminisistration has been raising funds to execute our various programmes.
“We have been developing talent in the state. One of them is Kelechi Iheanacho, who was discovered through one of our competitions and today, he plays for a top English Premier League side, Manchester City after his exploits at the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2013.
“I know I have what it takes to run football in this country,” said Uchegbulam, who is the incumbent chairman of Imo FA,” Uchegbulam said.
Source: Tribune
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