The Guild of Sports Editors in Nigeria has commended President Bola Tinubu for what it described as a bold and courageous intervention to reform Nigerian football following the resignation of the leadership of the Nigeria Football Federation.
Rising from an emergency meeting on Friday, the Guild said the resignation of NFF President Ibrahim Gusau, the General Secretary and members of the Executive Committee must mark the beginning of genuine and far-reaching reforms rather than another change of faces.
The development comes after years of frustration over the country’s declining football fortunes, including the Super Eagles’ back-to-back failure to qualify for the FIFA World Cup, Nigeria’s absence from the FIFA U-17 and U-20 World Cups, the decline of Nigerian clubs in the CAF Champions League and Confederation Cup, and the Super Falcons’ failure to qualify for the FIFA Women’s World Cup for the first time in their history.
“The emotions and joy of Nigerians have repeatedly been shattered by the failures that have become our lot in football,” Guild President Tony Ubani said in a statement.
While commending Tinubu for having the courage to confront the crisis, the Guild urged the National Sports Commission to ensure that any proposed normalisation committee comprises people with proven integrity, competence, honesty and a genuine commitment to football development.
“The composition of the Normalisation Committee must not become another bazaar or an opportunity to compensate friends, girlfriends, political associates and cronies,” the statement warned.
“Nigeria needs people with fresh ideas, proven competence and unquestionable integrity to lead this reform process. Those who have contributed to the mess Nigerian football has become must not be recycled.”
The Guild called for a clearly defined mandate, membership criteria and timetable for the committee, warning that it must not become another permanent structure without a clear exit date.
Its proposed terms of reference should include a comprehensive review of the statutes and governance structure of Nigerian football, the establishment of a transparent electoral system and stronger accountability mechanisms.
It also urged the reform process to resolve the fundamental legal question surrounding the identity and status of the country’s football governing body, particularly issues relating to the names Nigeria Football Federation and Nigeria Football Association.
“There is everything in a name. The legal foundation of Nigerian football must be properly addressed if the reforms are to stand the test of time,” the Guild stated.
The body further demanded a comprehensive forensic audit of the NFF’s finances, contracts, assets and activities, insisting that the resignation of the former leadership must not bring an end to ongoing investigations into allegations of financial malfeasance.
“Resignation is not immunity,” it declared.
“Anyone found to have abused his or her position or mismanaged the resources of Nigerian football must be held accountable. Whoever has dipped his hands into the cookie jar must face the consequences of such actions in accordance with the law.”
The Guild urged the government and the NSC to consult FIFA and the Confederation of African Football throughout the process but warned that fear of sanctions should never again become an excuse for tolerating incompetence or impunity.
“Football autonomy must not be interpreted as freedom from accountability,” it said.
It also warned against using the reform process to recycle existing administrators or preserve the same structures under a different name.
“We shall be watching. This opportunity must not be wasted or turned into another exercise in recycling the same people and preserving the same failed system under a different name.
“The objective must not simply be another election and another set of administrators. Nigeria must build a football system founded on transparency, competence, accountability and sustainable development.”
The Guild described Tinubu’s intervention as a rare opportunity to rebuild Nigerian football and urged the Federal Government and the NSC to ensure that the reform process produces lasting and irreversible change.
“Nigeria has suffered enough. Nigerian football must now be rebuilt.”
