AFN VP, Gadzama not aware of Kwara state athletics coach, Muritala’s doping ban
The first Vice President of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria,( AFN), Tafida Gadzama says he is not aware that Kwara State athletics coach, Hammid Muritala was serving a 10-year ban.
Gadzama made this revelation following reports in Nigerian newspapers that the banned Muritala has been training athletes and even brought them to AFN organised competitions.
The AFN is being run like a secret cult and majority of board members are not aware of decisions taken by the President (Tonobok Okowa),’ revealed Gadzama, the Sydney 2000 Olympics gold medalist.
The AFN first Vice President says Okowa and the Secretary General, Rita Moshindi, have been running the federation like a private company and a lot of cover ups are going on in the federation.
‘When any athlete is charged for using prohibited substances, the Athletics Integrity Unit, (AIU), will publish the notice of charge and when a decision is reached, it is equally published. We all saw how the Blessing Okagbare anti doping violation was handled by the AIU, including how they arrived at the decision to slam a 10 year ban on her.
‘The contrary was the case in the AFN under Solomon Ogba (for eight years) and now Okowa where no one knows who has been caught and that explains how the Kwara state athletics coach has defied the ban and has been carrying on as if nothing happened.
The banned coach, I have been reliably informed, has been to every AFN organised event since his ban last year starting with the National Sports Festival in Asaba, Delta state capital last December,’ said Gadzama.
The AFN first Vice President is not also sure the Kwara State Athletics association was notified of the coach’s ban and wants the Secretary General to show email evidence to that effect since correspondence with State Athletics Associations is done via email.
‘As at today, the AFN Secretary General, on the order of the President has locked members out of the federation’s WhatsApp channel following calls that he should run a transparent and inclusive administration.
‘We have seen how they announced a sponsorship deal with Premium Trust Bank August last year in Birmingham, on the sidelines of the Commonwealth Games without the knowledge of board members and how the unsigned deal, despite photo ops is yet to leave the table of the brokers almost nine months after.’