Barely 48 hours to the Sports Federation Election scheduled to hold in Abuja, facts have started emerging on the under hand play by the current Sports Minister Bolaji Abdullahi to systematically eliminate his perceived enemies to ensure that majority of the federation presidents come from his state.
Investigation shows that the Kwara born Sports Minister in collaboration with the Director of Sports Bolaji Ojo-Oba who is also from Kwara State have schemed out all the front runners in favour of his cronies. It was gathered that as at last count, six sports federations have been cornered by the minister. In making sure that this was achieved, Bolaji Abdullahi has changed the election guideline about four times in order to achieve his aim.
To further reduced the election to mere selection of candidates, he was allegedly instructed Director of Sports Bolaji Ojo-Oba not to release the list of elected board member that will elect the federation president and further withhold the forms meant for intending contestants for the position of the president.
Remarkably, the routine newspaper advert that precedes the actual election where the names of board members will be published for public scrutiny was tactically avoided by the Bolaji Abdullahi led National Sports Commission. In contradiction of election guideline, the Minister has also avoided the dissolution of the board thereby making the outgoing federation presidents to nominate their cronies as players? nominees in the board to enhance their re-election chances.
As at press time, Kogi State Sports Council is protesting that Bolaji Ojo-Oba ignored the withdrawal of their Director which failed to represent the interest of the state in the last zonal election.
The poor credibility of the election has led to the stakeholders calling for the immediate postponement of the election in order to give way for credible independent electoral body to come in and conduct the election. Close followers of sports federation election have also said that what the current minister is doing with the election will further create acrimony among the stakeholders of the game and further under- develop the sports in the country.
