President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau says it is incumbent on the Interim Management Committee (IMC) of the Nigeria Professional Football League to imbue the nation’s elite domestic cadre with integrity, credibility and a firm hand on management and administration in order to turn things around for the better.
Speaking at the inauguration of the committee inside the NFF Secretariat on Friday, Gusau pinpointed lack of television broadcasting as one of the major drawbacks of the elite League.
“There is a lot of work to be done by this committee of eminent and respectable persons in Nigeria Football, people with the pedigree and real calibre to effect change. One of the changes must be to ensure that our League is back on television, and that there is a lot of integrity and credibility to the way and manner it is being administered.
“I have tremendous confidence in the chairman and members of the committee that they will justify the confidence reposed in them by the Government and people of Nigeria,” he said.
Gusau thereafter presented to the chairman, Hon. Gbenga Elegbeleye, one-time Director General of the National Sports Commission, the terms of reference of the committee, which will be in place for three months.
In his response, Elegbeleye thanked the NFF President and his Board for the confidence they have proclaimed in the committee and assured that the IMC will do its best within the three months lifespan to put in place building blocks that a substantive team will improve on to rejuvenate, upgrade and upscale the Nigeria Professional Football League.
“Definitely, we have a lot of problems in the League. We have problems of officiating, of lack of television and several other hiccups. Our job will be to do a lot to redress these within the short time we have, and we also appeal to the media to ensure credibility in their reporting of the League,” Elegbeleye, also a former vice chairman of the Youth and Sports Development Committee of the House of Representatives, said.
The IMC include Hon. Gbenga Elegbeleye as Chairman, Elder Paul Bassey (Vice Chairman), Prince Davidson Owumi (Head of Operations), Hon. Kunle Soname, Mr. Daniel Amokachi, Mr. Calvin Emeka Onwuka, Mallam Aliyu Adamu, Rep. of Nigeria Police, Barr. Danladi Ibrahim, Mr. Mohammed Nasiru Sa’idu, Barr. Poubeni Ogun, Auwalu Baba Jada as Members, Mr. Olumide Bamiduro (Secretary), Dr. Ayo Abdulrahaman (Assistant Secretary)