The National Sports Commission, NSC, has accused Mr. Peter Obi of attempting to politicise the triumphant homecoming of Nigeria’s U-17 women’s football team, the Flamingos, and has urged him to apologise publicly to the players.
In a statement issued by the NSC Chairman, Alhaji Shehu Dikko, the Commission rejected Mr. Obi’s claim that he was deliberately prevented from greeting the team on their arrival in Abuja, describing his portrayal of the episode as a “toxic narrative of political victimisation.”
The Flamingos arrived at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, at about 5:30 a.m. on an Air Maroc flight from Morocco, where they had just won the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.
According to the statement, NSC and Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, officials who received the team reported that two individuals wearing Peter Obi campaign caps and attire approached them, requesting that Mr. Obi be allowed to meet the players and take photographs — an arrangement, the Commission noted, that would likely have involved campaign materials.
The officials declined the unscheduled request, citing the players’ exhaustion after a long flight and a demanding tournament, and the absence of any prior arrangement for the reception.
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“Nothing in the account provided by the officials supports the suggestion that their jobs were at risk,” the statement said, adding that Mr. Obi, who said he was at the airport to board a flight to Enugu, would ordinarily have departed from the domestic terminal, while the Flamingos arrived through the international terminal.
The Commission maintained that Mr. Obi “was never captured anywhere near the team” in media coverage of the arrival, and that members of the public present were free to take photographs, dance and shake hands with the players.
Dikko demands apology, defends safeguarding protocols
The NSC chairman said the Flamingos — who are minors and have a dedicated safeguarding official within their technical crew — should not be drawn into partisan controversy, and advised Mr. Obi to “reflect deeply and offer an unreserved apology to these young girls for souring their moment of glory.”
He stressed that access to the players must be managed through formal channels, inviting Mr. Obi and any well-wisher to send a formal request to the NFF or NSC so that appropriate arrangements can be made.
Dikko also contrasted Mr. Obi’s congratulatory messages during the tournament with what he called sustained engagement, noting that the team’s journey — qualifiers, the WAFU tournament and the World Cup — spanned more than seven months. He pointed to a Nigerian businessman who, immediately after the final, donated $50,000 to the team on the pitch “without seeking any media mention.”
Uyo dressing-room claim rejected
The statement further dismissed Mr. Obi’s assertion that he was similarly blocked from visiting the Super Eagles in their dressing room after the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Zimbabwe in Uyo on 25 March 2025.
Dikko, who said he sat on the same row as Mr. Obi alongside the governors of Lagos, Bayelsa and Akwa Ibom states, said no dignitary was admitted after the match because the players — following an unfavourable result — had asked to hold an immediate team meeting.
He explained that access to dressing rooms at FIFA matches is controlled by a FIFA-appointed security official under strict protocol, breaches of which can attract fines or a stadium ban.
“Football is our national asset that brings Nigerians together across ethnic, religious, and political differences,” Dikko said. “The Flamingos have earned the country’s admiration, and their World Cup victory should strengthen our unity. It must not become another platform for partisan division.”
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