NFF President, Amaju Pinnick Escapes Impeachment

• Barred From Contesting Again
• As Election Holds Sept 30

By JOE APU

Nigeria Football Federation, NFF President, Amaju Melvin Pinnick on Wednesday escaped impeachment.

The Congress of the Nigeria Football Federation, at its Annual General Assembly on Wednesday had frowned at what it termed gross misconduct on his part as well as Amaju’s plan to have the elective congress moved by one month.

According to our source, there were fears that Pinnick could be asked to step down by the majority of the Congress for gross misconduct and his request by the Pinnick-led board to have the election shifted by one month.

“The impeachment threat was true,” a source told our correspondent at the Best Western Hotel, Lagos venue of the AGA.

“Pinnick did a lot last night to pacify the Congress to shelve the plan and he was told pointedly that he should allow the process to flow without interference which also foreclosed the possibility of him taking part in the election.”

However, Pinnick fired a subtle attack on members of the Congress who criticised his tenure saying hatred against him demarkets Nigerian football.

He said his ambition is to leave the Congress in one unit the same way it was handed over to him by erstwhile President Aminu Maigari.

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However, the General Assembly agreed that the election should be held on September 30 instead of 10 days earlier when the tenure of the current board is expected to terminate.

He said: “As I stand before you today, I want to thank the Congress for what they have done for Nigeria football in the last eight years. I want to leave Congress as one unit the way it was handed to me in 2014.

“We know we did our best within our means in the last eight years; Nigerians love football and they don’t like to lose but this is a sport where a winner must emerge and you can’t win all the time.

For those of us here who see that as a reason to hate me, this thing is not against Pinnick, we are de-marketing our football. I want to say it here that I am not going to contest for the NFF President again.”

Meanwhile, the Professional Footballers Association of Nigeria has described the decision of Congress as an exercise in futility following the shutting out of the union from the AGA, according to Sporting Sun.

The Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the union Harrison Jalla told our correspondent at the venue of the AGA that his body is a statutory bloc in the NFF and shutting them out of the AGA after they agreed to withdraw a suit that prevented the Congress from holding is tantamount to deceit, fraud and illegal.

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Although the election is more than one month away, politics and campaign has rented the air already. Our correspondent observed that the venue of the AGA practically turned campaign ground as prospective aspirants were seen building bridges and speaking to members of the Congress who are electorate.

Peterside Idah, a former international who has indicated interest in succeeding Pinnick stormed the AGA with colourful magazines containing his manifestos.

(Sporting Sun, excluding headline)