By  Paul Bassey

Without quoting instances in our country’s chequered football history, many believed that if what happened to Fabrice Muamba in White Hart Lane during an English Premiership match between Tottenham Hotspurs and Bolton Wanderers was to be in Nigeria, then the young man would have died.

Fabrice Muamba is alive today because of the professionalism displayed by the medical staff, the availability of equipment and the timely reaction of match officials in this case the referee.

Tottenham and Bolton players stand by as English midfielder Fabrice Muamba is treated by medical staff after collapsing during the English FA Cup quarter-final football match between Tottenham Hotspur and Bolton Wanderers at White Hart Lane in north London, England on March 17, 2012. The game was abandoned at half-time as Muamba was taken to hospital. AFP PHOTO

Quickly, the Nigeria Football Federation ( NFF ) swung into action issuing a memo emphasizing the need for all and sundry especially Nigerian clubs to be well equipped for their matches given the sanctity of human lives.

I quote “The Nigeria Football Federation said on Thursday that it will henceforth ensure full compliance with all medical and security requirements by clubs hosting any League match in the country.

Speaking in Abuja, NFF President, Alhaji Aminu Maigari said the Federation will issue unambiguous directives to the Nigeria Premier League, Nigeria National League, Nigeria Women’s League and Nigeria Nationwide League on the matter of compliance with these requirements.

The NFF President went further: “It is important that all medical requirements are met before the beginning of any match. There will no longer be half measures or overlooking of critical requirements.

People in charge of arranging security at all stadia must work hand-in-hand with the Football Association in each state to achieve the best possible condition before kick-off of any match.

“For instance, there has to be ambulances at every League match, whether, Premier League, National League, Women’s League or Nationwide League. It is not only the ambulance, but other provisions as well”.

Statutory provisions require that at least 50 policemen must be at the stadium to provide security before kick-off of any League match, and there must be adequate security at the hotels of the two teams, escort

arrangement to the stadium and to training pitch, well-organized traffic control measures in the event of diversion and security at the stadium entrance for screening and at the VIP area.

Medical requirements include two ambulances, on-ground medical staff (first-aiders and stretcher-bearers), well-equipped medical bay within the stadium and solid arrangement with a well-equipped hospital in case of emergencies.

Then all hell was let loose. Why now? Has it taken the near death of Fabrice Muamba to get the NFF to know that medical and security processes are non negotiable in our stadia?

Permit me to hold brief. That the timely NFF memo was just a reminder of what is, and should be. The rules and regulations governing the Nigerian Premier league as an example have medical regulations governing the playing of any match, before, during and after.

Before the start of any league season, the NPL makes it mandatory for clubs to register their players complete with a medical dossier whose tests must be concluded in a government approved hospital.

Right from the pre-match meeting the match commissioner seeks to confirm the quantity and quality of medical personnel available …and they can never be too many.

The host association, the host and visiting teams always provide their fare share of doctors, nurses and masseurs. Then, in addition to the ambulance that is provided by the state football association, we have what we call “stand by vehicles” provided by the two teams as back up movement vehicles in case of emergencies. Then the insistence on TWO stretchers and two teams of stretcher bearers in case of simultaneous injuries.

Also embedded in the rules of our football as handed down by CAF include guides on the treatment of injured players. The fair play gesture normally precedes the quick check of an injured player by a referee. He then finds out from the player the extent of damage or injury. This leads to the invitation of the doctors and it is the doctors that determine whether the stretcher bearers should be invited by the referee, depending on the gravity of the injury.

Sometimes due to lack of sufficient education, medical personnel rush into the field the moment a player goes down chased hotly by stretcher bearers to the chagrin of the helpless fourth official.

However as noted by a colleague in the course of this argument, Match Commissioners henceforth should not just be satisfied by the claim that an ambulance has been provided but should go a step further to verify that the vehicles so parked are not just carcasses devoid of the prescribed medical equipment including oxygen masks and other life resuscitating and sustenance equipment.

When the Davidson Owumi NPL  regime insisted on playing league matches at television friendly stadia we were so relieved because venues so targeted included those that had hosted international competitions complete with well equipped and manned medical bays.

What about referral hospitals? Such must be registered in advance and inspected to guarantee suitability.

Another issue that needs attention is security at stadia with the Heartland –Enyimba show of shame still fresh in our minds. There are only two FIFA-CAF Security Officers in Nigeria, that is yours truly and Dr. Bolaji Ojo Oba. There should be more. Every club in this country should have at least one security officer. Because Dr Ojo Oba and I are also General Coordinators, the job of commissioning matches also becomes a bit easier since we bring our experience to bear on those requirements necessary for the organisation of a smooth and hitch free match. A General Coordinator by training is expected to harmonise all marketing, protocol, media, security and overall general organization of the match.

Football security should not be confused with policing and peace keeping. It encompasses all of these and more. It is a science, and it is only security officers that have the capacity of determining the degree of safety of a match venue, not soldiers or policemen.

The resurrection of Fabrice Muamba is definitely a wake up call and we should decide not to be caught unawares because to be fore warned is to be fore armed.

Nigerian clubs in CAF

Last Thursday I heard what ordinarily should be a joke but Sunshine Stars Football Club of Akure swore that it is for real, that the leadership of the NPL are insisting that they did not know Sunshine Stars were traveling out last Thursday, that is why they wanted them to play a mid week match on Tuesday. A joke isn’t it?

Before Nigerian clubs in continental assignments were told to fend for themselves due to the financial burden on the then NFA, the Federation it was that took care of all the logistics of travel and so on. However even after the clubs had gone solo as it were, the NFF was still expected to provide all the technical back up. CAF also insists that the country’s soccer ruling body provides a leader of delegation and an accompanying secretary for home and away matches of clubs in continental assignments.

When match commissioners hit town they insist on being received by officials of the state Federation and it is the Federation that moderates pre-match meetings. It does not stop there. Match appointments by CAF are sent to the clubs through the Federations and it is the Federations that organize match officials visas and pay their indemnities on behalf of the clubs….what about the establishment of contact  with our ambassadors abroad? Of course clubs do not have those powers.

I have been struggling to say that the NFF and by extension the NPL cannot claim ignorance of the travel arrangements of a club that is scheduled to represent this country abroad because those arrangements are expected to be made by the soccer ruling body. No wonder CAF allocates a percentage of monies won by clubs to Federations!

Please let us return to the good old days of football devoid of politics.

Apologies to Dr. Jaja

After my piece last Monday, I got a call from Dr. Sam Sam Jaja who protested his being referred to as “simply Mr.” he also took time off to explain some of the reasons why he had to go to court and so on. I thanked him for the maturity displayed in calling me, I disagreed with his resort to the ordinary courts in the solving of football matters and apologized profusely for referring to him as a MR, promising to rectify same.

Sincere apologies DR.

See you next week