FIFA ban: FG recognizes Amaju Pinnick as NFF chairman –Presidency

The Presidency has recognised the Amaju Melvin Pinnick-led executives of the Nigeria Football Federation as the authentic executives of the federation.

The Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Laolu Akande, twitted this on his Twitter handle, @akandeoj.

He explained that the Federal Government had already conveyed its position to the world football governing body, FIFA.

He said the government would continue to work with stakeholders to resolve the federation’s dispute in due time.

He added that the government is upholding NFF’s treaty obligations to FIFA.

Akande wrote, “The FG has already conveyed to FIFA its firm position recognising Amaju Pinnick-led NFF as the current and only NFF executive.

“Government will also continue to work with all relevant stakeholders involved to resolve dispute in a timely manner.

“The Federal Government is upholding NFF treaty obligations to FIFA.”

FIFA, had frowned at the alleged government interference in the leadership crisis, and on August 14 threatened to suspend the country from all their activities on August 20 if “the NFF offices are not handed back to the legitimate NFF executive committee under Amaju Pinnick, who was duly elected on September 30, 2014.”

Chris Giwa and Amaju Pinnick have been locked in a leadership tussle over the true leader of Nigerian football after separate NFF presidential polls produced the duo.

While Giwa was declared the winner of the election in Abuja on August 26, 2014, Pinnick was declared winner on the September 30, 2014 poll in Warri.

Giwa was back on the saddle on July 2nd after the Minister of Sports, Solomon Dalung, directed the NFF to comply with the Supreme Court judgment on April 27, 2018 restoring the orders of the Federal High Court setting aside the election which brought in Pinnick as the president of the nation’s football body.