I am not an English graduate but I understand the language ascribed to the late Queen of England, known as Queen’s English. Queen’s English refers to a “clear accent which matches received pronunciation, a clear accent without strong local or regional slang”.

Today the English word I am addressing is ‘CONTINUITY’. I am not particularly interested in how the English pronounce it but what it means as it is used by a group which has suddenly surfaced in Nigeria because of the forthcoming Nigeria Football Federation, NFF election.

The group is known as Gusau Solidarity Forum, GSF. The Gusau we are talking about here is not the capital of Nigeria’s Zamfara State but the president of the NFF, Ibrahim Gusau, ironically from Gusau.

Just a few days ago, this GSF group of supporters of the NFF president rolled out a campaign poster with the inscription ‘Continuity 2026’.

The real meaning of ‘CONTINUITY’ from my finding is, “the state of something continuing over time, connecting smoothly from one part to the next, or remaining consistent”. This got me worried. Worried because I tried to understand what Gusau’s friends in the GSF believe are his achievements in four years that should warrant his continuing in office.

On the campaign poster, they listed these qualities for Gusau – Leadership, Vision, Progress and Building a Greater Future for Nigerian Football.

Take leadership. Gusau couldn’t provide leadership when he failed to make a case for Nigeria when CAF allowed South Africa to play their away matches against Lesotho and Zimbabwe at home because the two countries lacked CAF-approved home stadiums.

Meanwhile Benin Republic, Nigeria’s nearest neighbours also did not have an approved stadium but they chose Cote d’ivoire to play their home matches rather than just cross their Seme border with Nigeria to play.

The loss the Super Eagles suffered against Benin in Abidjan contributed to why Nigeria couldn’t qualify for the 2026 World Cup.

Even though this is not an excuse why the Super Eagles lost to Benin or even drew some of their home matches in Uyo, Gusau didn’t show leadership in the matter that gave South Africa an advantage.

The second quality, Vision, hasn’t shown because there is no particular programme Gusau introduced in four years that has turned our football around like what Senegal and Morocco have consistently shown over a few years.

Let’s not talk of ‘Progress’ because our teams, both club and national teams haven’t made much progress in about 10 years.

Take the Super Eagles for example. Reaching the 2023 AFCON final in Cote d’Ivoire and losing to the host and then losing the 2025 AFCON to another host, Morocco in the semi finals is not progress in any way.

On building a future for Nigeria’s football, Gusau cannot because he hasn’t put structures on ground for sustainable development.

How many local players from the Nigerian league are graduating into the Super Eagles? How have our football clubs fared at CAF competitions since the exploits of Eny- imba football club in the champions league. Is the decline not as a result of the poor standard of the Nigerian Professional Football League?

So the call by a few friends of Gusau for ‘Continuity’ is mis- placed because it is a call for Nigeria football to continue in mediocrity and slide to total destruction.

I don’t know whether one of the greatest critics of Nige- rian football administrators, Alhaji Ahmed Shuaibu Gara Gombe, himself a former chairman of Gombe State Foot- ball Association, is part of the GSF.

I was shocked that the same Gombe who advocates good governance with verifiable performance is now rooting for Gusau and calling Amaju Pinnick, former NFF president who ‘installed’ or imposed Gusau as his successor, a failure.

In fact he posited that “Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau is not to be blamed for the Super Eagles World Cup miss”, but the enemies within like Pinnick “who wouldn’t want Gusau to achieve what they couldn’t achieve”.

Isn’t it a surprise that Gara Gombe who said that if nothing is done urgently about football administration in the coun- try, Nigeria may miss the 2030 World Cup is still insisting that Gusau should continue despite trying to navigate the landmines allegedly planted to derail him?

Gara Gombe said: “I maintain that there are landmines laid along the way even before the Gusau-led NFF assumed duties. But Gusau chose to be a gentleman by trying to navigate his way, avoid them, and assiduously work to secure result. But when the foundation is faulty, like they say, what can the righteous do?”

Hello Gara Gombe, are you not aware that Gusau was part of those who laid the faulty foundation you are talking about back in 2005? They, with the help of then FIFA secretary general, Urs Linsi, changed the NFF statutes as it affects voting at its Congress?

That anomaly removed voting rights from major football constituencies and gave it to the 37 chairmen of football associations from the 36 States and the Federal Capital Territory who are mostly government imposed civil ser- vants and politicians.

So calling for Gusau to continue for another 4-year term is a disservice to football and insult to other knowledge- able stakeholders who have been shut out and frustrated by mediocre football administrators.

Unfortunately when the government which majorly funds football from tax payers money wants a change in the way football is run, the cabal run to FIFA, citing interference and urging a ban on their country.

Hasn’t the recent 2026 World Cup shown that the so-called talk about government interference is reserved for smaller nations as the same FIFA allowed United States’ president, Donald Trump to interfere in how the game should run?

And this was after Trump denied a FIFA accredited ref- eree entry into his country to officiate at the World Cup.

The call for Gusau to be stopped is therefore justified. No CONTINUITY 2026.