A majority of the general assembly of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has rejected the impeachment of Aminu Maigari as president of the federation.
A total of 26 state FA chairmen, who make up more than 50% of the 44-member congress and comply with requirements of Article 24 of NFF statutes, at a pre-general assembly resolved in a seven-page document made available to reporters that Maigari remains president of the NFF and he should immediately return to office.
Aminu Maigari
“That the undersigned having constituted more than 50%+1 of the members of the general assembly (as required by the NFF statutes for taking valid decisions at the congress) and in view the mathematical impossibility of the remaining members to ratify the alleged dismissal pursuant to the NFF statutes, the President should immediately return to his desk and continue as President of the NFF until after the elective congress of Tuesday, 26th August, 2014,” read part of the resolutions.
The FA chiefs said Maigari’s purported dismissal did not follow laid down procedures.
They also declared that allegations of financial misappropriation, misapplication and maladministration against Maigari are unproven as the audited accounts of the NFF for the past three years were never queried in the last three annual assemblies.
An extraordinary congress slated for Abuja on Thursday, which was to endorse Maigari’s impeachment, was on Wednesday shelved by the NFF executive committee due to what an official statement said were “unforeseen circumstances”.
However, it is believed that the extraordinary congress was put off because those against Maigari “did not have the numbers” at the congress.
The Abuja hotel where a majority of the congress put up ahead of the extraordinary assembly was Thursday sealed off by Nigeria security operatives as guests were barred from receiving any visitors.
And as at press time, Maigari has been invited by the director of the State Security Service.
Nigeria was recently suspended by FIFA after the country’s sports minister appointed a caretaker administrator for the NFF.
Elections to the executive committee of the NFF are to be conducted on August 26.
