Embarrassed by the wave of visa scams which has hit the Nigeria Judo Federation (NJF) since 2012, the Ministry of Sports will soon launch an investigation.
A Nigeris Judoka in action during a championship
A fresh visa scandal erupted in the federation, leading to the impeachment of Timothy Nsirim as president. A Sports Ministry source that pleaded to remain anonymous said a panel would be set up to probe the present visa scandal and many others.
“The visa scam is a very weighty issue and it will get all the attention it requires. If not for the just-concluded Commonwealth Games, the investigation would have commenced,” the source said.
Heads would roll at the end of the probe because, according to him, some of those involved were still in the employ of the Ministry. He further revealed that they won’t just be sacked, but would be handed over to relevant agencies for prosecution because their crime was not just visa racketing but also human trafficking.
The ministry, the source revealed, is particularly interested in the 2012 scandal which drew the ire of the Taiwanese, as almost two years after the incident, the Taiwanese are still waiting for answers from the federation.
TheNiche gathered that in September 2012, a request for visa for 17 ‘judokas’ purportedly from Lagos State and signed by then secretary of the NJF, Yemi Usikaye, was granted by the Taiwanese.
Former assistant Director of Sports in Lagos, Alfred De Souza, according to the Taiwanese, stood in as a guarantor for the ‘athletes’. But two months after the expiration of the visa, 15 of the judokas refused to return home.
In a letter to the then president of the NJF, Isa Matori, on December 12, 2012, Head of Mission, Tien Hsing Yang, warned that if the ‘judokas’ who stayed back were not compelled to return, the consequences would be dire.
“As you are aware, such a breach of immigration protocol has dire consequences for the individuals concerned and tarnishes the image of Nigerians and Nigeria,” the diplomat stressed.
This might have forced the NJF to commence investigation into the scam, and on December 24, 2012 addressed a letter to the Director of Sports, Lagos State Sports Council. In the letter signed by secretary of the federation, Mrs. Toyin Aluko, the NJF sought clarifications from the council on the judokas who purportedly were sponsored for the trip by the council. The NJF also dissociated itself from the letter requesting for the visa allegedly signed by the former secretary, Yemi Usikaye.
“Please note that the NJF is not aware of any such trip to Taiwan and the letter purportedly written by the NJF dated September 14, 2012 and signed by Mr. Yemi Usikaye (former secretary-general) did not emanate from the NJF.
The NJF further appealed to the Lagos State Sports Council to carry out its investigation and submit the findings to the federation on or before January 21, 2013. But the investigation was terminated abruptly.
From independent investigations, it was discovered that of the 17 names submitted for the judo tournament, only three were real judokas. It was also discovered that the letter headed paper of the NJF used to apply for the visas was also forged.
