NFF electoral system is faulty – Odegbami

Former Green Eagles skipper Patrick Segun Odegbami has lamented the sorry state the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has found itself in the past weeks which led to the world football governing body threatening to ban the country. Odegbami who was part of the team that won Nigeria’s first Nations Cup trophy in 1980 has blamed the faulty electoral structure as the key to the incessant crises in the Nigeria football house

He said the predicament rocking the football house is as a result of administrative incompetence of some of the officials at the helm of affairs while predicting more dangers ahead if the problems are not identified and fixed.”It is a disaster that happens every four years and unless we do something about it, there will be a repeat of this disaster in the next four years. There is something wrong and we have to identify and fix it. The electoral process is very faulty no wonder we are not progressing administratively because our football is growing steadily,” Odegbami fondly called “Mathematician” during his playing days noted.

He narrated his ordeal about how he purchased a form to contest for a position in Nigeria football only to be disqualified.”I registered my intention to be part of the process, to contest for a position in the executive committee of the NFF. I didn’t pick up a form to contest for the presidency, all I wanted to do is to find space within the executive committee and I did that because I realized that if you don’t buy a ticket, you will never win a lottery. I purchased the ticket to examine the system and find out what it is and immediately I was disqualified, though, the decision was reversed. And after that, there have been all manners of confusion and crises. “We don’t know who to blame, we don’t know what the issues are and not to talk about the solution. It is all about confusion.

Odegbami, however, did not rule out himself completely from heading the Nigeria football house in years to come. “If the issues are resolved, if the structure, guidelines and statutes are clear and done well to reflect progress, why won’t I put in my own bid to be a part of football in this country? “I have paid my dues. I am a sports ambassador of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and former captain of the senior national team.

“My business is football. I own a sports school and I write football, so I can’t go anywhere else. If there is a level playing ground and the rules clear and transparent, then by all means I will love to be a part of the leadership of football in the country,” he concluded.