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| Gov Babatunde Fashola (SAN) |
It is sad that while the world and the nation is waiting and watching for football aficionado and lawyer governor of Lagos State, Babatunde Fashola (SAN) to lead the way in the most appropriate media, election, to fill FA boards, reports oozing out of the state is dirty, condemnable and undemocratic.
The facilities manager of Teslim Balogun Stadium, Godson Uti, was quoted to have declared Fashola’s interest to use government fiat in the election on who becomes the new LSFA board chairman.
Fashola, a lawyer and staunch advocate of Rule of Law believes and preached before now that “no government interference” in the management of football in the state. He is an avid player of the game himself. He had at various occasions washed the state government’s hands off the LSFA board election.
His words: “Our administration will not interfere in the running of football as directed by the world football governing body, FIFA.”
As if taking a cue from his boss, Adeniji-Adele, the Commissioner for Sports had repeatedly said that the state government will not in anyway interfere in the affairs of the board as regards the election saying that the aspirants should go the polls.
Uti, at the meeting of Congress of the LSFA, peopled by club owners in the state held at his Teslim Balogun Stadium office, Tuesday said “the Governor has a candidate in mind and that the Governor whom he calls by his first name, Babatunde, will do whatever he (Uti) asked him Fashola to do”.
Uti, further said at the meeting as disclosed by a member of the club owners who attended the meeting that the Governor cannot do without him and that as a member of the same All Star Football team in the state, he will influence the governor.
He was said to have told those in attendance at the meeting that the Governor already has a candidate and the message to the Congress from the Governor to them is to support his candidate whose identity was not revealed.”
After the congress meeting which opened the procurement of forms for the various elective positions from today, the election is scheduled for the 31st December, 2010.
This is a wonderful report. I gathered that Chief Mike Umeh, a member of the NFF and also a member of the All Stars FC which Gov Fashola is a member is working in concert with this Mr Uti. Someone was mentioning and quoting Umeh that they (All Stars FC) will force the governor to do their bidding and that as the Vice President of the NFF the governor will have no option than to listen to him.
ReplyDeleteThere are chances that the governor may have been circumscribed in these matters by those who say and boast that they are close to him.
Can we advise the governor to know this is a slippery banana peel. He has done too much to make this dirty politics in the NFF make him look stupid in the eyes of the people of Lagos and Nigeria who respect him for all he has been doing since.
As the date for election into the board of the Lagos State Football Association, (LSFA) draws nearer the Babatunde Raji Fashola government’s promise of not intervening in the election is being flouted by one of his top aides, Prince Wale Oladunjoye, the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on grassroots sports.
ReplyDeleteOladunjoye, whose project, Adopt A Talent has been described as a fraud, been using it as an avenue to siphon government fund has been campaigning for one Adegoke Adelabu of Eko United football Club.
According to him, Adelabu is the anointed candidate of Gov. Fashola and that another candidate in person of Adewale Paul Joseph of Honour Babes of Agege must be dropped in place of the governor’s favored candidate.
Oladunjoye who has been calling some of the other aspirants and electorates said that they must do the biddings of the governor else he would make the LSFA ungovernable and unbearable for them when elected, adding that the governor’s wish must be obeyed.
With the new threat in the air, other aspirants are jittery and confused so as not to disobey the "Governor’s order". But a source who pleaded anonymity said the governor has no hand in the matter and that the SSA is only using the governor’s name to plant his own people, adding the governor had always been preaching fair play and that aspirants should face polls to determine who goes into the board in line with the directive of the world governing body, FIFA and the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF. The election will hold on the 31st December, 2010 at Press Centre of Teslim Balogun Stadium.