NFF Appeal: D-day for Falode, others

Nigerian football will be put through another test today, when the NFF Appeals Committee, headed by Barrister Ola Mafo, meets to decide whether or not to uphold the appeals filed by Aisha Falode against the election of Dilichukwu Onyedinma as Women Football Chairperson and another appeal filed against Chief Emeka Inyama, by the North East candidates as the National League boss.

Both appeals bothers on the eligibility of both candidates to hold the offices, against the statutes of the NFF, especially in Article 33 (1), which talks about Federal Character in the distribution of the 15 executive committee positions available in the NFF.

Speaking on today’s hearing of the petitions, a group known as Elders of Women football says all they want from the appeal is fairness and a personality that can give the women game a new vista.

“All the candidates swore on oath to present papers that are impeccable, if at the end of the day one party is found wanting, the ideal thing to do is to apologise and step aside, instead of this bickering. But we trust that the Appeals Committee will give us a new face for Women football that has suffered in recent years.

Other stakeholders have continued to stick out their necks for Falode, declaring that she is one of the few women in the country that can make Corporate Nigeria take Women Football seriously. “We’ve had enough of civil servants and those who only want what the system can give to them, what we want are those who can bring sponsorship and other goodies to Women football and Falode has the qualities to deliver”, the release read in part.