By Jacob Ajom
Impeached President of the Nigeria Football Federation, his first vice, Amanze Uchegbulam and former head of the technical committee, Taiwo Ogunjobi have taken the executive committee of the unsettled Nigeria Football Federation to the Court of Arbitration for Sports.

The three top executives were impeached on allegations of corruption and abuse of power just before the August 26th disputed elections that ushered in the Aminu Maigari-led executive. Lulu, Uchegbulam and Ogunjobi are now challenging their impeachment at CAS, claiming that their impeachment was based on false accusations and therefore illegal. The trio are not asking for reinstatement but want to put records straight, clear their names and are asking CAS to award them
$1 million compensation as damages.

Speaking with Sports Vanguard, the former first Vice President of NFF, Amanze Uchegbulam said, “Myself, for example, I did not approve a kobo, did not control money and did not award any job. I had nothing to do with money. So why tarnish my image?”

Uchegbulam said that so many things were being said about them that were not true and they would do everything humanly possible to clear their names before “the good people of this country”.

Said he: “I knew my duties and I did them to the best of my ability in four years. False accusations have been levelled against us. They even said I owned property in South Africa. Let me be executed if that is true.”

On the matter before the EFCC, Uchegbulam simply said, “since the matter is already in court, we will talk when we open our defence but I want to maintain that God will vindicate the just and justice will prevail.”

Uchegbulam is one of the four officials of the impeached Sani Lulu-led board of the NFF being tried on charges of corruption at an Abuja court, but he is denying any wrongdoing. He spent the Sallah holidays in prison along with Lulu,

Ogunjobi and Bolaji Ojo-Oba, erstwhile Secretary general of the NFF, but said the experience had made him stronger.
“I have a strong conviction in whatever I do. Let justice take its course.”