Decree 101 not the problem, says Ogun
By Olukayode Thomas
SPORTS administrator and former athlete M.A.K Ogun yesterday declared his support for the school of thought that believed that the problem with Nigerian football is not Decree 101, but rather the officials and the members of the board of Nigeria Football Association (NFA).
Ogun also has a supporter in Mohammed Lawal, a former footballer who said the proposal by the NFA to send Dr. Amos Adamu, the former Executive Director of COJA, the body that organised the Abuja 2003 All Africa Games to Zurich, is a waste of public fund. "The man should first of all explain why he could not declare the profit he promised after the Abuja Games", said Lawal.
Ogun, former technical director of AFN and athletics' manager to Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, said the problem with Nigerian football has always been that of management, not Decree 101 or any other rule for that matter.
"The people running football in Nigeria are the problem. Alhaji Ibrahim Galadima has been the chairman of NFA for some years now, how many sponsors has he been able to attract?
"Galadima could not convince his own towns man, Alhaji Aliko Dangote to sponsor football to the tune of N10 million. Is it Decree 101 that says they should not look for money. The problem is Galadima is too self-opinionated", Ogun enthused.
He further argued that individuals should serve on the board of NFA either because they have the technical know-how about the game, or because they have the contact to bring in money.
"But the blunders of the present board committee daily, shows that they don't have the technical knowledge of the game. The irony is that people that are sound like Olukanmi and Achebe, the the doors of the NFA are closed against them."
Ogun believes Decree 101 is just like our constitution. "Our constitution is good, but people that are running the country don't have genuine intentions; that is why the country is not working", Ogun explained.
Meanwhile, Lawal has said that any trip to Zurich because of Decree 101 is waste of public fund. "There is no justification for it. We know what FIFA is complaining about, we have all the facts.
"And if anything is unclear, this is the world of e-mail, and telephone, we can call FIFA or mail them. We don't need to send any delegation to Zurich, it will not serve any useful purpose, it is just job for the boys", he said
Lawal also said the report in the media that the NFA was considering sending Adamu to Zurich is disturbing. "Are they telling us they are not competent enough to relate with FIFA, their parent body, so they need an outsider to negotiate on their behalf?", he queried.
"Even if they needed contact desperately, Chief Adegboye Onigbinde is there, he is very close to FIFA, he is a member of many committees and sub-committees, he is highly respected by Sepp Blatter, Jack Warner and other people in the FIFA hierarchy.
"Adamu is still new to football politics. He joined CAF only recently. He is not in any FIFA committee or sub-committee. I think Adamu should still stay at home and sort out the problems of COJA.
"They are still indebted to many hotels, and other corporate bodies, he is yet to declare the profit he promised to declare.
The problem of Decree 101 can be solved without anybody going to Zurich."
Lawal believed that as long as government is funding sports, they have the right to control football and NFA. "It is just like saying government should give an organisation money and not monitor them.
"As long as government is funding the NFA they will control it. If football administrators want total independence, then they should emulate the Nigeria Professional Golf Association (PGA), they seek for their funds and they are independent of the government's control" concluded Lawal.
