Stakeholders in Nigerian football have reached a consensus to back a normalisation committee to oversee the Nigeria Football Federation,NFF, sources told NAN.
The committee is expected to operate for not more than one year and prepare the ground for a new federation acceptable to the various stakeholders.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that a CAF/FIFA delegation met stakeholders on Monday and Tuesday to seek ways of resolving the crisis in Nigerian football.
A source who participated in the meetings told NAN that stakeholders agreed that a normalisation committee would be established to midwife a new federation.
He said the committee would help resolve the current leadership vacuum and organise the process for restoring stability to the NFF.
“The first batch of the FIFA delegation left Nigeria on Tuesday, while the remaining officials left on Wednesday,” the source said.
He said the officials inspected FIFA projects, including the Goal Project and the hostel under construction in Abuja.
“The composition of the normalisation committee would become clearer on Friday,” the source said. “But I can tell you that almost all the stakeholders are on the same page. They want the best for Nigerian football.”
The CAF/FIFA delegation came to Nigeria following the crisis triggered by the mass resignation of members of the NFF board.
Those who resigned included the former NFF President, Ibrahim Gusau, and the Secretary-General, Mohammed Sanusi.
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The international mission held emergency meetings with NFF management, state Football Association chairmen and members of the NFF Congress in Abuja.
Disagreements reportedly emerged among stakeholders over the appropriate approach to resolving the leadership vacuum.
The issues included whether to establish a normalisation committee or adopt a caretaker arrangement to manage the federation.
There were also differences over whether the leadership should be drawn from within the football administration or appointed externally.
An NFF insider said the stakeholders eventually agreed to support whatever arrangement would help reposition Nigerian football.
“The normalisation committee will decide when to hold the NFF election after putting the house in order,” the source said.
Meanwhile, former Nigeria captain and football administrator, Segun Odegbami, has described FIFA’s intervention as a “blessing” for Nigerian football reforms.
Odegbami was among the stakeholders who attended the three-hour meeting involving FIFA, CAF, the NFF and other key stakeholders in Abuja.
Odegbami told NAN that the discussions were held in a cordial atmosphere.
He said participants discussed the challenges confronting Nigerian football administration without rancour and described the meeting as a positive step towards reform.
Odegbami said the FIFA delegation demonstrated a strong understanding of the problems facing Nigerian football and gathered additional information for its report.
He said reforms were coming, with or without a normalisation committee, while stressing that FIFA would have an important role in implementing any final decisions.
He also said compromise would be required from all sides, with stakeholders expected to give and take in reaching an acceptable solution.
Odegbami described FIFA’s latest intervention as “a blessing” and “a necessary step” towards implementing agreed reforms.
“Mission to Abuja accomplished,” he said, adding that he left the meeting encouraged by the positive atmosphere among participants.
NAN
