Everytime Nigeria Premier League chairman Oyuiki Obaseki opens his mouth, I cringe.
The man is a walking, talking advertisement for how to misyarn in public.
For a man who is head of Nigeria's domestic league, some of the utterances that Obaseki spits out are more the stuff of a traditional village meeting, complete with calabash of the prevailing local brew, than the composed dignified statements of a true leader.
His latest outburst came last Wednesday while announcing the suspension of Bayelsa United from the league for their indebtedness to players.
He made a statement to the effect that he 'swore an oath that Bayelsa United will not kick a ball until they pay the money they owe."
I mean, how much more uncouth can a man get?
Where did he swear the oath? Was it at Okija shrine or somewhere in Benin?
Please someone at the NPL, anyone, needs to put a clamp on Chief Obaseki's mouth.
Consider it a national service
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
Thursday, January 01, 2009
Why Bosso survived
You may have read the story on KickOffNigeria.com about how Flying Eagles coach Ladan Bosso survived the sack on Wednesday.
Well, what I gather from an inside source at the NFF is that he was saved by Iroha. Now, how is that possible?
We have to start from the beginning.
Bosso was slated to be fired after the Canada 2007 fiasco where his Flying Eagles team disappointed in a 1-4 Q/F loss to Chile.
The coach himself compounded matters by accusing the ref of racism, a charge which earned him a FIFA ban.
But then Sports Minister Hassan Gimba ensured that he stayed on.
Subsequent dismal performances, including the most recent one at the WAFU Cup, had Nigerians calling for his head.
The almost-last straw was when he went on radio to say that a planned pre-tournament trip to Kenya had to be shelved because the NFF had no money, so he should not be blamed if the team fails.
The bigwigs at the Glass House were miffed, and that is putting it mildly.
I was informed that Bosso was in the picture of the entire Kenya trip and the circumstances behind the cancellation, which included the fact that the East Africans (who were expected to line out their senior side), developed cold feet when they were drawn against Nigeria in the World Cup qualifiers.
Consequently, the arrangements were never finalised.
So the NFF big guns were aggrieved to hear the coach hammer them in a radio interview.
at the meeting on Wednesday morning, NFF President Lulu was all for firing him with immediate effect, and promoting Iroha to Head Coach.
But other members, led by Taiwo Ogunjobi, prevailed on Lulu to back down.
One of the arguments used was that Iroha is involved in player agency, and it would not be right to hand over a cadet team to a coach who moonlights as a player agent.
That was how Bosso survived.
And now the question must be asked as to Iroha's long term future as a national coach.
Well, what I gather from an inside source at the NFF is that he was saved by Iroha. Now, how is that possible?
We have to start from the beginning.
Bosso was slated to be fired after the Canada 2007 fiasco where his Flying Eagles team disappointed in a 1-4 Q/F loss to Chile.
The coach himself compounded matters by accusing the ref of racism, a charge which earned him a FIFA ban.
But then Sports Minister Hassan Gimba ensured that he stayed on.
Subsequent dismal performances, including the most recent one at the WAFU Cup, had Nigerians calling for his head.
The almost-last straw was when he went on radio to say that a planned pre-tournament trip to Kenya had to be shelved because the NFF had no money, so he should not be blamed if the team fails.
The bigwigs at the Glass House were miffed, and that is putting it mildly.
I was informed that Bosso was in the picture of the entire Kenya trip and the circumstances behind the cancellation, which included the fact that the East Africans (who were expected to line out their senior side), developed cold feet when they were drawn against Nigeria in the World Cup qualifiers.
Consequently, the arrangements were never finalised.
So the NFF big guns were aggrieved to hear the coach hammer them in a radio interview.
at the meeting on Wednesday morning, NFF President Lulu was all for firing him with immediate effect, and promoting Iroha to Head Coach.
But other members, led by Taiwo Ogunjobi, prevailed on Lulu to back down.
One of the arguments used was that Iroha is involved in player agency, and it would not be right to hand over a cadet team to a coach who moonlights as a player agent.
That was how Bosso survived.
And now the question must be asked as to Iroha's long term future as a national coach.
Happy New Year!
Its 2009, and the makeover is almost complete.
A new beginning will be upon us all on these pages.
For now, enjoy the festivities
A new beginning will be upon us all on these pages.
For now, enjoy the festivities
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