Dr Rafiu Oladipo, the President-General, Nigeria Football Supporters Club (NFSC) on Monday urged Nigerians and the whole world to know that there was no faction in the club.
Oladipo, currently in Brazil for the just-ended Rio 2016 Olympics, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the purported fractions were figment s of the imagination of enemies.
“The Nigeria Football Supporters Club is a registered club guided by a constitution and has a Board of Trustees (BoT).
“The BoT, the elders, the members of the executive council are united and had impeached Vincent Okumagba as its chairman.
“As guided by the constitution, Okumagba remains impeached and this was duly communicated to all stakeholders in sports, including the police for thuggery.
“All his (Okumagba) followers are either suspended or members expelled from the club for one crime or another,’’ he said.
According Oladipo, someone can be sacked from the police and still wears the uniform to organise illegal road blocks,
He said that was the case with Okumagba and that led to his impeachment.
On Nigeria’s sports generally, the president-general pleaded with the incumbent administration not to play unhealthy politics with it.
“Sports, especially football are what put smile on the faces of Nigerians; I plead with this administration not to play politics with our sports.
“Sports do not speak different languages or religion. Sports unite, it brings friendliness, it brings similes and happiness to people,’’ he wrote in an e-mail to NAN.
Oladipo said that before he left the stadium at Belo Horizonte, he got sad news that Nigeria’s U-17 team lost its AFCON qualifying match to Niger Republic.
“The Super Eagles, the Flying Eagles are all out of AFCON and Nigeria may be missing out in the World Cup in Russia in 2018,’’ he said.
He called on the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) concerning the World Cup qualifying matches, urging it to consult experienced hands to ensure the country’s qualification.
According to him, the NFF at the moment must avoid playing football politics and realise that one voice and unity is voice of victory. NAN
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