The Interim Management Committee (IMC), established by the Federal Government to manage the Nigeria Professional Football League for a limited time, has been urged by club owners to begin operations by the Nigeria Football Federation.
When they met with newly-elected NFF President Ibrahim Gusau on Monday in Abuja, they adopted many resolutions, one of which was this.
The LMC, which was eliminated by the FGN, will be replaced by the IMC, which is led by Gbenga Elegbeleye, a former director general of the National Sports Commission.
The main focus of the discussion was the urgent need to establish a better-packaged, fruitful, and more successful Nigeria Professional Football League that will plant the seeds of a more advantageous football economy for all stakeholders.
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13 club owners were present, with Barr. Isaac Danladi of Nasarawa United serving as manager and former Nigeria Football supremo Ibrahim Galadima representing Kano Pillars.
In addition to Elder Paul Bassey of Akwa United FC, Adamu Aliyu Mohammed of Niger Tornadoes FC, Coach Amehi Dickson of Dakkada FC, Promise Nwachukwu of Heartland FC, Ferdinand Emeka of Rangers International FC, Prince Tunde Ogunja of the Sunshine Stars, Rt. Hon. Tunde Olaniyan of the Shooting Stars FC, Abubakar Abubakar of Gome United FC, Mr. Dominic (Katsina United FC).
Absent with excuses were representatives of Rivers United, Kwara United, Plateau United, and Wikki Tourists.
NFF’s Deputy General Secretary, Dr. Emmanuel Ikpeme and Ag. Director of Legal, Barr. Okey Obi were part of the deliberations.
The Full Resolutions:
1) The Club Owners unanimously congratulated the new NFF President, Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau and Members of his Board and pledged total support to the Board on any steps it will take to ensure that the Nigeria Professional Football League really begins to live up to the name of a professional league in every sense of the word.
2) The Club Owners collectively maintained that the NPFL has suffered serious problems in the past six years and identified the following areas:
a) Lack of Sponsorship
b) No TV Broadcast
c) Poor Officiating
d) Insufficient Funding
d) Lack of Match Integrity
e) Poor remuneration of match officials and huge indebtedness in this area
f) Matches won on the basis of Highest Bidder
g) Poor Infrastructure
h) Incompetent Administrators
i) No prize money for winners and/or failure to honour same, et cetera
3) The Club Owners charged the NFF President and his Board to critically look into the aforementioned areas of concern and restructure the Nigeria Professional Football League in line with international best practices.
4) They called on the NFF President to set up a small committee of football experts to look into the former League Management Committee (LMC) and the current Interim Management Committee (IMC) and come up with a functional governance structure to drive the NPFL for the good and development of football in Nigeria and for the benefit of all major football stakeholders.
5) The Club Owners appealed to the NFF President to inaugurate the present IMC as appointed by the Federal Government through the Honourable Minister for Youth and Sports Development, Mr. Sunday Dare but with a short tenure.