By Tony Ubani
Chairman of NFF’s Technical Committee, Chris Green may have touched the Tiger’s tail last week when he chided ex-international, Adokie Amiesimaka for questioning the hiring of Technical Director, Belgian Tom Saintfiet.

Amiesimaka had said that the NFF was wasting tax-payers’ money by appointing Belgian Tom Saintfiet as National Technical Director, faulting the appointment as ‘error of judgement’.

But Barrister Chris Green said the former player has, strangely, maintained a habit of trying todiscredit every effort of the Nigeria Football Federation for no just cause. “He has been at the vanguard of a group that has consistently lambasted the NFF, saying the game has nose-dived.

Now that the NFF is taking the bull by the horn to address the issue of genuine development, he is again at daggers-drawn.

Without seeing the job schedule of Mr. Saintfiet, Amiesimaka has gone ahead to rubbish his appointment while also trying to disparage the young man. Yet, he does not have Saintfiet’s resume and knows little about the man beyond his own assumptions”, Green fired.

Adokie laughed off Green’s vituperations and maintained that the NFA Act, 2004, says NFA is a corporate body that can sue and be sued in a court of law.  “Did Green, as Secretary of Sharks FC, not take Sani Toro’s NFA to court in 1998, after instigating the event that led to the dispute in the first place? As I’ve consistently said, the NFA should push for an appropriate amendment or repeal of that law instead of questioning appropriateness of seeking redress in a court of law.

Public officers owe the public the duty of explaining/justifying their official actions when requested to do so, and should realize they cannot act with impunity. It’s nothing personal. And diversionary tactics have never helped NFA”.

Still livid with the hiring of the Belgian, Adokie asked; “Where, in the world, has that gentleman shown any expertise in football development to earn that office in Nigeria? No, doubt, another sad Lagerback case!”

He also asked; “does the job of this European entail sitting tight in Belgium capital or is he expected to access nooks and crannies of Nigeria? Can he freely traverse dark creeks of Niger Delta or dare the doubtful welcome of the far North? Maybe, a special contingent of the NPF will be his personal detail.

And to what avail? Why has prerequisite restructuring of NFA not been addressed? This board is hell-bent on perpetuating characteristic planlessness of its predecessor and even fallen short of their unenviable ‘no show’ in area of carefully thinking things through.

NFA should intelligently tackle challenges of football development in 21st century instead of excelling in taking our football to unprecedented depths of poor performance and dissipating energy picking a futile fight with every imaginary foe”, he said.