*Galadima berates NFA
*Nnaji lambasts Adedoja

By Patrick Omorodion
The country’s football polity was heated up again during the week with the alleged double nomination submitted by the Nigeria Football Association, NFA to the Confederation of African Football, CAF for next month’s election into its Executive Committee.

Following the three years suspension slammed on Dr. Amos Adamu, Nigeria’s CAF and FIFA Executive Committee member by the world football governing body, the Aminu Maigari-led NFA Board nominated former chairman, Alhaji Ibrahim Galadima for the election to be able to beat the December deadline for the submission of names by interested federations.

A twist was however, added to the process when early in the week it was reported that the NFA had indeed submitted Dr. Adamu’s name to CAF, claiming that Alhaji Galadima would be on standby in case Dr. Adamu win’s his Appeal against the ruling of FIFA’s Ethics Committee on his involvement in the cash-for-vote scandal last year.

Adamu

However, reacting to the action, Alhaji Galadima told Saturday Vanguard Sport that it (submission of Adamu’s name) was embarrassing to the country stressing that “it’s like they (NFA) are dancing to Adamu, they don’t want to step on his toes and want to appease him.”

Speaking on phone from his Kano base, the one time sports commissioner in Kano State said “is Adamu  indispensable, so without him Nigeria can’t move forward? It is a surprise to me that someone who has a case to answer should hold the nation to ransom.”

He opined that the NFA wants him to beg them to push his case in the impending CAF election, stressing that “It’s (begging for favour) never been part of my life and I can’t start doing it now. I didn’t ask for it, they nominated me themselves.”

Alhaji Galadima said that the NFA had left him in the dark since after sending his name to CAF, believing that the new stance of the football house is as a result of the re-emergence of the disgraced former Director General of the National Sports Commission.

“They (NFA) have not spoken to me since after submitting my name to CAF. They are tying the election to Adamu’s Appeal, when is the Appeal going to be heard, nobody knows,” he said, adding that he would still be watching events as they unfold.

Meanwhile former Board member of the NFA, Barrister Ray Nnaji has lambasted new sports minister and Chairman of the NSC, Professor Taoheed Adedoja, claiming that he pressurised the NFA into reconsidering the submission of Dr. Adamu’s name to CAF after nominating Alhaji Galadima.

He told Brila FM radio monitored in Lagos that he would be forced to report the minister to FIFA for interference because the double submission is an embarrassment to the country.