I knew it before this time there would a change of mind by the Fed.Gov and the change will happen the moment Lulu and gang are ousted thank God they have gone and our football is back again all we need now is a better people in the glass house those who know what football is all about and not just anybody from anywhere.

I am so happy at the development and hope Nigeria football move on well from this point. And I hail Jonathan for his stand at least someone in power can say stop and stand on it till the Will of the people were done I am so proud of him and his courage because if he(Jonathan) had not taken that decision of banning for two years as a tactics to remove or impeach Lulu and his gang I can bet it that Lulu and his gang will lobby there way out and still remain as NFF boss either through crook, hook, godfatherism, bribery and so on.

Good job GJ u did the rit thing n the ens justifies the means. Thank you.

NFF executives stay, says world soccer body
PRESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan yesterday rescinded his decision to ban Nigeria's football teams from participating in the game at international level for two years.
News of the reversal which was broken by an official of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Dominic Iorfa, came just before the expiration of the 1600GMT deadline issued by the Federation of International Football Associations (FIFA), world soccer’s governing body, to the country to rescind the decision or face a ban.
NFF officials met with Jonathan at the presidential villa early yesterday to appeal to him to lift the ban, while Nigerian FIFA Executive Committee member, Amos Adamu, was locked in a separate meeting with National Sports Commission (NSC) officials, also in Abuja.
The Presidency yesterday evening confirmed that Jonathan had rescinded the ban.
A FIFA Media Department statement from Johannesburg, South Africa, last night said: “The Nigerian government has today confirmed in a letter to FIFA that it revokes its decision to withdraw Nigeria’s participation in all FIFA and CAF organised competitions of the next two years. In addition, the Nigerian Government also recognises the currently elected executive of the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF).
“The letter was received by FIFA before the deadline set last Friday, 2 July, and follows mediation talks between FIFA Executive Committee member, Dr. Amos Adamu and the Nigerian Government. Therefore, the NFF remains vested with all its statutory rights.”
A statement by the Special Adviser to Jonathan (Media and Publicity), Mr. Ima Niboro, said: “The Nigeria Football Federation at a meeting with President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan today tendered unreserved apology to the President and the Nigerian people on the dismal performance of the country’s football team, the Super Eagles, at the World Cup appearance. They also informed the President of their decision to disband the team, and address the numerous shortcomings evident in the management
of football in Nigeria.
“They assured the President of their commitment to evolving an enduring football development programme, and grow a new senior national team that will bring glory, rather than consistent embarrassment to Nigeria on the world stage. They informed the President that as a first step, they have proceeded to put their own house in order by removing the former leadership of the NFF, and replacing it with an interim leadership.
“Based on these assurances, and the appeals of well-meaning Nigerians, including former leaders, President Jonathan has decided to review the earlier two-year ban on the country from all international football competitions. This review would enable other categories of Nigerian players participate in global football competitions, while a new senior national team is being developed.
“At the meeting, the President also directed the Sports Minister to call a meeting of all relevant stakeholders to resuscitate football academicals and other talent spotting outlets to produce a new crop of footballers and other sportsmen for the country.”
NFF paved the way for the government to change its mind by removing its own president, Sani Lulu, and two other key officials, Amanze Uchegbulam and Taiwo Ogunjobi at a hurriedly convened meeting in Abuja last Sunday. Aminu Maigari now heads the ‘restructured’ NFF.
The swearing in of the caretaker committee appointed by the government to oversee the running of football in Nigeria, in place of the NFF, was put on hold yesterday, which was the first indication that the authorities might back down.
Jonathan announced the decision suspending participation in international football last week, following the poor performance of the country’s senior national team, the Super Eagles, at the on-going 2010 FIFA World Cup. He had said that the ban was necessary to "enable the country to put its house in order".
FIFA saw the decision by Jonathan as government interference in football and said it would expel Nigeria from world soccer if he did not reverse it within 48 hours.
An official of the NSC, who spoke with The Guardian on condition of anonymity in Abuja yesterday said that with the about-turn, Jonathan has shown that he has the interest of Nigerian youths in mind.
“I have to salute his courage in rescinding his decision because this will save Nigeria the long ban FIFA had threatened to impose on the country,” he added.
With the development, the Nigerian female team, Falconets, will participate in the 2010 FIFA U-20 World Cup. The team’s plan of travelling to Germany for acclimatization at the weekend was aborted because of the President’s ban. They are expected to regroup for training in Abuja from today.
Before the Presidency rescinded its decision yesterday, the House of Representatives had unanimously passed a motion condemning the government’s pronouncement.
The House has also mandated its Committee on Sports to investigate the NFF’s activities for alleged mismanagement of the nation’s soccer.
However, the Action Congress (AC) said the decision could change the face of the country's football for good, if properly managed.
Also, a lawmaker and Chairman House Committee Rules and Ethics, Federal House of Representatives, Ita Enang, had condemned the action to ban Nigeria from all international football competitions, saying that Jonathan acted against the Nigeria Football League law passed by the assembly.
In a statement in Lagos by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the AC described the ban as the kind of radical shift that Nigeria needs to leapfrog to greater heights not only in football, but in all other sectors.
The AC went on: “We have read how the decision violates the FIFA statutes prohibiting government's interference in football. We are also aware that FIFA's usual reaction to such interference is to ban the country's national teams and clubs, as well as officials (including referees) from its events.
“Even if FIFA goes ahead to slam this ban on Nigeria, it is but a little price to pay for a decision that may well return Nigeria to its glorious past in football. Let's stay the course on this issue.''
This, of course, was before Jonathan changed his stance, following the apology from NFF yesterday.
However, one school of thought is of the opinion that the volte face is a face-saving measure for the president, who may have been erroneously led, by some interested party, to taking the decision to withdraw the country from international football for a period of two years, without wide consultation with stakeholders.
But another school of thought describes the president’s action as a courageous one, since it takes a courageous man to admit acting hastily, and thereafter makes effort to undo the deed. They went ahead to commend Jonathan for acting with dispatch, thereby yielding to the general feeling of gloom that would have followed the long period of the country’s absence from international football action.
Before the Federal Government shifted grounds, the FIFA Emergency Committee was to decide on the suspension of Nigeria from its fold if the country failed to rescind its decision to pull out of international competition and unban the erstwhile Sani Lulu Abdullahi-led board.
It had also informed that it had already kicked off preparations to invite an alternate team to fill the slot which would be created in the event of Nigeria’s failure to rescind its decision, and the subsequent missing of the FIFA U-20 Women World Cup, which begins in Germany, next week.
In a tersely worded letter to Abdullahi, dated July 2, 2010, FIFA maintained that the Federal Government’s decision to set up a management committee was a “clear and blatant governmental interference and as such it violates Article 13 par. 1g and Art. 17 of the FIFA statutes.”
The letter signed by Secretary General, Jerome Valcke, further stated that the Federal Government’s posture “stands in complete contradiction with what has been discussed between the Minister of Sports and the FIFA President in their meeting held on June 23, 2010 in Johannesburg. On that occasion, the FIFA President explained at length, the need to let the electoral process run according to the NFF statutes and he clearly advised against any governmental interference.
In the letter, FIFA warned that failure of the Nigerian government to rescind its decision to pull out of international competition and unban the NFF board by yesterday at 18h00 Johannesburg time, the FIFA Emergency Committee will decide on the suspension of NFF with immediate effect.
“In the meantime, preparations have already begun in order to invite an alternate team to participate in the FIFA U-20 World Women’s World Cup-Germany due to begin on July 13, 2010. If the decision is not reversed before the said deadline, the team will replace Nigeria,” the letter stated.
It further warned, “We would like to underline the dire effects a suspension could have on the future of Nigeria’s football. It would of course mean that no Nigerian team of any sort (including clubs) could have any international contact (cf. art. 14 par. 3 of the FIFA statutes).  But it would also mean that neither NFF nor any of its members or officials could benefit from any developmental programme, course, or training from FIFA or CAF any longer.
“As a consequence, we consider that this governmental decision would only completely isolate Nigerian and could thus stall potential reforms and further development and improvement of Nigerian football for along time. It puts the whole future of Nigerian football in danger, good a thing, the idea of banning the team in the first place yielded a good fruit, lets continue from there , that lulu of a criminal is gone now lets get back to business, nigeria we hail thee

sani lulu and sepp blatter are allies. whatch out, they will both find a loophole in the impeachment process and return the crooks to power.how sure are we that the impeachment will be ratified by the other members of the board.
lets hope we are not just dancing round in circles.
the best we can do now is ensure a free and fair election (that may be a record in nigeria as it has never happened in any parastatal) inot the board of nff and stop dancing around.

We all knew it was going to happen. It was just plain stupid but I hope Sani Lulu et al are not coming back.

Nice decision by Jonathan

Why do we have such lazy backward thinkers in Nigeria. Is it the education system? Please explain how you would go about "cleasing 9ja first of its iniquities

Home grown idi.ot

if the statement "cleanse Nigeria if its iniquities first" is backward thinking, then apply to the Nigerian Open University for Adult classes

and talking about education, im sure i am much more educated than the king of your clan

tkb417:

Home grown idi.ot

if the statement "cleanse Nigeria if its iniquities first" is backward thinking, then apply to the Nigerian Open University for Adult classes

and talking about education, im sure i am much more educated than the king of your clan

.

What are you guys dragging now?

@proudly9ja, na God go bless you and your generation, for your wonderful and reasonable contribution to this important issue.

I wonder how some people thinks. Completely negative beings, and they will amount to nothing when they are elected leaders. Your opinion to issues show the level of your leadership qualities. So many of them are worse than "Saddam Hussein + Abacha + Babaginda" put together


For those that reason with their backside, I sorry for you and the kind of family you are going to raise.

tkb417:

Home grown idi.ot

if the statement "cleanse Nigeria if its iniquities first" is backward thinking, then apply to the Nigerian Open University for Adult classes

and talking about education, im sure i am much more educated than the king of your clan

Stop being foolish. The sports ministry is trying to find a solution to bad administration and stealing at the top of Nigerian football. You seem to think this is a bad idea and that Nigeria should first be cleansed. So please inform me of how that is not a retarded way of thinking. And please inform me of what Nigeria's "iniquities" are.

oisehumen:

.

What are you guys dragging now?

nothn o
just trying to let him understand his IQ reads in negative integers

Mariory:

Stop being foolish. The sports ministry is trying to find a solution to bad administration and stealing at the top of Nigerian football. You seem to think this is a bad idea and that Nigeria should first be cleansed. So please inform me of how that is not a retarded way of thinking. And please inform me of what Nigeria's "iniquities" are.

see this suegbe?
so the rot in NFF is a one off in Nigeria? what about the rot in other govt establishments in the country?
who says when the sports ministry completes the restructuring , the NFF will be free of corruption?


if ur comprehension is faulty, my point is: A corrupt entity called Nigeria cannot successfully eliminate all the anomalies in the our football if the macro world still reek of filth

which school u go sef? abi den no teach u common sense for the polythecnic wey u go

bloody rat

sycophants have coe to exhibit thier characters.thank they have not tribalised this thread.

the title shou ld be Jonathan bend over to Sepp blater.

eva4wd:

Speaking of CEO with proven track record, I don't recall any existing football administrator in Nigeria with a proven track record,
Someone prove me wrong!

Well i really can't say this person or that individual but if we take a look at flourishing FA, the head has a proven record. People like Taiwo Ogunjobi have nothing to do at the glass and his likes should be probed.

tkb417:

see this suegbe?
so the rot in NFF is a one off in Nigeria? what about the rot in other govt establishments in the country?
who says when the sports ministry  completes the restructuring , the NFF will be free of corruption?


if your comprehension is faulty, my point is: A corrupt entity called Nigeria cannot successfully eliminate all the anomalies in the our football if the macro world still reek of filth

which school u go sef? abi den no teach u common sense for the polythecnic wey u go

bloody rat

Do you see how sŧupid you are? So we should wait till "Nigeria is cleasned of it's iniquities" as you put it before we attempt to make our football better? You scream about school/IQ yet you keep posting rubbish that makes no sense. "macro world still reek of filth" Do you read what you write before you hit post? Do you see your stupidity?

slowpoke.

Mariory:

The fact of the matter is, as long as the government provides funds for the NFF to function then it will interfare with the NFF. If FIFA truely wants the NFF to be independent, then it must find a way for the NFF to survive without taxpayers money.
Government influence has already forced Lulu out. The next stage is for the person the government favours to become chairman.

So naive it's untrue. You make it seem like it is not Nigeria we are talking about.
1. How is the EFCC or police suppossed to get the evidence of embezzlement with it becoming government interferance? Are you suggessting they show newspaper articles to a magistrate?
2. This is exactly what has been achieved with the threat of no funds for 2 years. They have quickly impeached said trio.

Watch this space for developments.

I truly cant believe that you wrote that while pretending to be educated and informed. Finding evidences of impropriety is the primary job of the EFCC. If you don't know this, then you have no business discussing about corruption. Note also, that the FIFA statutes does not bar a nation from investigating its officers, so being accused of corruption is not viewed by FIFA as interference.

To your post contents: Government interference is the reason why NFF is corrupt! The nominees that run sport and being elected to NFF are all nominated by the government, either through the sports ministry or the state associations. Thus the corrupt NFF is a reflection of the corrupt government.

So in your opinion, the best way to get rid of a certain trio, was to rubbish the image of the country. To send the signals that our leaders do no think of consequences of their actions, or to portray the President as lacking depth of thoughts. Me and my friends over a round of drinks would have advised the President better and the same trio would be out in a jiffy.
BTW, you insult the Office of the President when you imply that that office can not influence a committee of 13 persons without recourse to comedy.

For your information, the NFF makes more money from FIFA than most companies in the country. In a typical year, the NFF gets more than $2M from FIFA, then add the sponsorship money and appearance fees. Then you'd know that it can actually be independent.

The question to ask is, can the Nigerian government accept a truly independent FA?

Goodluck Jonathan said that the comments on his Facebook page among other things helped convince him to lift the ban.

shilling:

Goodluck Jonathan said that the comments on his Facebook page among other things helped convince him to lift the ban.

did threats from a certain tkb417 change his mind

what bla bla bla are you guys talking about?

Mariory:

Do you see how sŧupid you are? So we should wait till "Nigeria is cleasned of it's iniquities" as you put it before we attempt to make our football better? You scream about school/IQ yet you keep posting rubbish that makes no sense. "macro world still reek of filth" Do you read what you write before you hit post? Do you see your stupidity?

slowpoke.

Ure a decorated simpleton shinning in bright colors

Akainzo has just described you in another word - Animal

You dont know anything and yet you pretend to be educted

1) You dont know the NFF members are nominees from the Govt of the day- do you?
so if the Govt representative are corrupt, what does it tell you?

2) you dont know how EFCC works

3) you dont know what exactly FIFA describes as interference in football admin

4) you dont know anything - this is serious


read the post by Akainzo and get some perspective

you dont have to be a doofus all your life- Get some adult edu

bawomolo:

did threats from a certain tkb417 change his mind

i think so

GJ has some people working for him on NL

i was gonna sue his ass for making football unavailable for years

thank God he listened- Good thing we have a listening President tho
thumbs up

To your post contents: Government interference is the reason why NFF is corrupt! The nominees that run sport and being elected to NFF are all nominated by the government, either through the sports ministry or the state associations. Thus the corrupt NFF is a reflection of the corrupt government

.
Thats what Mariory dumbo cannot understand

he needs some spiritual bath in river ogun

anitabest:

what bla bla bla are you guys talking about?

this is not romance section o

find ur square root

it is a good thing,he did.God bless him, i will suport him in next year election.

Akainzo:

Finding evidences of impropriety is the primary job of the EFCC. If you don't know this, then you have no business discussing about corruption.

What the hell are you blabbing about? Everyone knows this.

Akainzo:

To your post contents: Government interference is the reason why NFF is corrupt! The nominees that run sport and being elected to NFF are all nominated by the government, either through the sports ministry or the state associations. Thus the corrupt NFF is a reflection of the corrupt government.

So in your opinion, we should have leave Nigerian football as it is? And the following articles do not support what you said about NFF nominees coming from the government.

"Exactly what kind of man is FIFA and CAF kingpin, Amos Adamu, and how have he and his protégées flooded the NFF with so many relatives and friends? Nigerians may be about to find out, as the haunt for hundreds of thousands of dollars at the NFF continues."
http://www.saharareporters.com/sport/football/2899-missing-nff-money-how-much-nff-200000-ekeji-236000-staff-400000.html

Saharareporters sources said with the "peaceful resolution" of the standoff today, Jonathan's people will be allowed to participate and possibly take over the NFF when fresh elections are held next month, a position that would have been impossible because of Adamu’s cronies at the NFF who had already decided on those who could participate in the elections. An extra-ordinary meeting of the NFF congress might be underway to open the way for new members to contest NFF positions.
http://www.saharareporters.com/sport/football/6454-nigeria-rescinds-its-plans-to-withdraw-soccer-competitions-to-avoid-fifa-ban.html

Akainzo:

So in your opinion, the best way to get rid of a certain trio, was to rubbish the image of the country. To send the signals that our leaders do no think of consequences of their actions, or to portray the President as lacking depth of thoughts. Me and my friends over a round of drinks would have advised the President better and the same trio would be out in a jiffy.

This has nothing at all to do with the point I am making. Besides didn't you already say the entire government is corrupt? So what image is there to rubbish exactly? Let's get back to the point at hand since you so want to be part of it. What is your opinion on the following tkb417 quote.

if NFF is corrupt, is that the only corrupt institution in Nigeria?
the corruption in NFF will be found in Presidency, all ministries and parastatals, armed forces, police, OPS, and even the religious houses

NFF mirrors the country Nigeria
clease 9ja first of its iniquities, then all will be well

tkb417:

.
Thats what Mariory dumbo cannot understand

he needs some spiritual bath in river ogun

No ability to think outside the box. Lets fold our arms until by the power of magic "Nigeria is cleansed of it's iniquities". A blatant excuse to carry on with corruption. Such a lazy and backward way of thinking.

NFF mirrors the country Nigeria
clease 9ja first of its iniquities, then all will be well

it means, the corruption in NFF is not an isolated case

it mirrors what happens in other parastatals and other govt agencies

selective purging and restructuring will bring us back to square zero cos whoever will fill the vacuum will still be a govt nominee.

do i need to spell it in yoruba or ur language?

tkb417:

it means, the corruption in NFF is not an isolated case

it mirrors what happens in other parastatals and other govt agencies

selective purging and restructuring will bring us back to square zero cos whoever will fill the vacuum will still be a govt nominee.

do i need to spell it in yoruba or your language?

Selective purging? Selective restructuring? What do you mean by these? Are you suggesting we can somehow clean Nigeria in one swoop? So then what is the point in attempting to clean the police force? What is the point in attempting to clean the education sector? What is the point in attempting to clean the finance sector? What is the point in attempting to clean any sector at all? In that case why would we even need seperate Ministires at all?

Do you really believe that by some wave of a magic wand Nigeria will be cleansed of corruption. That there is some place in government that once you "cleanse" it, Nigeria will be free of corruption. No matter what language you type in, this is just a lazy backwards way of thinking in order to continue the status quo.

Mariory:

Selective purging? Selective restructuring? What do you mean by these? Are you suggesting we can somehow clean Nigeria in one swoop? So then what is the point in attempting to clean the police force? What is the point in attempting to clean the education sector? What is the point in attempting to clean the finance sector? What is the point in attempting to clean any sector at all? In that case why would we even need seperate Ministires at all?

Do you really believe that by some wave of a magic wand Nigeria will be cleansed of corruption. That there is some place in government that once you "cleanse" it, Nigeria will be free of corruption. No matter what language you type in, this is just a lazy backwards way of thinking in order to continue the status quo.

common sense evades you

tell me of any attempt at purging the Police, the education sector and other sectors like we are doing with NFF?

if the govt of the day and his ministers channels half of the energy they are dissipating on football to other key areas where quality of life can improve, then Nigeria would be a better place.

Maybe you dont know winning the world cup will not improve the GDP nor tilt the standard of living in our favour

Misplaced priorities- a wanton display of unnecessary aggro

if football needs our attention so much why not the other sectors

Thats my case