Governing Bodies
NFF mourns passing of sports journalism titan, Sunny Ojeagbase
The Nigeria Football Federation has described as “shocking” the death of Pastor (Dr) Emmanuel Sunny Ojeagbase, the Chairman of Complete Communications Limited, who passed on at the weekend in the United States of America.
President of the NFF Amaju Melvin Pinnick stated that the departed oracle of sports writing and sports publishing carved a bold niche for himself in the profession, made a profound impression on the terrain as he tutored and mentored those who came to be the foredogs of the following decades and left his giant footprints in the sands of time.
“Anyone in the line of football, nay sports knew Pastor (Dr) Sunny Ojeagbase. He was the authentic legend of sports writing and sports publishing, and even went into other terrains that people thought was not possible. We are shocked by his death at this time because he still had so much to give. However, God loves him much more and he has taken him at the appointed time.
“Our joy is that he lived a full, fruitful and fulfilled life. On behalf of the Nigeria Football family, we pray that Almighty God will grant him eternal rest and also grant the family he has left behind, as well as the Complete Communications family, the fortitude to bear this great loss.”
While the likes of Peter Osugo (Pecos), Ishola Folorunsho (Mr It’s A Goal), Solomon Babatunde Oshuntolu (ESBEE) and Bisi Lawrence cut the trees in the sports journalism jungle, Emmanuel Sunny Ojeagbase, at the lead of other illustrious names including Mitchel Obi, Ikeddy Isiguzo, Chris Okojie, Gboyega Okegbenro, Ejiro Omonode, Kunle Solaja, Sam John, Mumimi Alao, Tunde Sulaiman, Muyiwa Daniel and Dave Enechukwu did the hard lifting and put in the hard days to make sports writing and sports reporting a glowingly attractive field.
Soft –spoken, self –effacing, unclamorous yet far-sighted, Ojeagbase made sports reporting an outstanding section in The Guardian Newspapers in the early 1980s, before leaving in 1984. The same year, he founded Sports Souvenir which became Nigeria’s first all-sport publication, to which he added Complete Sports, Complete Football International, Complete Football Extra, Sports Digest, ISR and other publications in the following decades, creating a media behemoth that in turn nurtured geniuses and prodigies who went on to dominate the profession with nonchalance brilliance.
Governing Bodies
Nigeria becoming an epicentre of global badminton as Francis Orbih enters the Badminton World Federation Council
Laurels on the courts and now glory in the boardroom sums up the mark that badminton is making in Nigeria.
The President, Badminton Federation of Nigeria (BFN), Francis Orbih, has been elected as a council member of the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
The election took place during the BWF Annual General Meeting on Saturday in Xiamen, China.
Orbih emerged victorious over top contenders from other African countries.
He will join Cameroon’s Odette Assembe Engoulou on the council, while Chipo Zumburani (Zimbabwe) and Hadia ElSaid (Egypt) missed out.
An elated Orbih expressed his gratitude to fellow badminton presidents across the globe for their trust and support.
He said, “I am deeply honoured by the trust placed in me by my peers across the badminton world.
“I look forward to quality representation, driving development initiatives, and strengthening badminton’s global reach over the next four years.”
Orbih also acknowledged the support of the Federal Government of Nigeria, particularly the National Sports Commission (NSC), which he said played a significant role in his successful bid.
“The Chairman and the Director General of the NSC monitored the entire process. I’m grateful for their involvement and confident Nigeria will benefit from this,” he stated.
He further appreciated the BFN board members and the Nigerian badminton community for their prayers and continued belief in his leadership.
“From the day I declared my intentions, the board members of BFN have been supportive, and I promise not to disappoint them,” Orbih concluded.
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A former member of the FIFA Council, Mamoutou Toure, has been released from jail in Mali after almost two years in detention for alleged corruption, Malian media reports said on Wednesday.
Toure, president of the Malian Football Federation since 2019, was released after 622 days in prison on Tuesday.
He served on the FIFA Council, world football’s all-powerful decision-making body, for four years until last month when he lost his seat after failing to contest new elections.
The 67-year-old was arrested in August 2023 on allegations of embezzling $28 million of public funds but was granted a provisional release order by the Malian courts, reports said.
He was accused of misconduct during his time as the National Assembly’s financial and administrative director from 2013-2019.
Toure denied all charges and, during his time in jail, was last August re-elected as Malian Football Federation president for a second consecutive term, with his supporters claiming he was a victim of a conspiracy fuelled by detractors.
While in jail, he received a letter of support from FIFA president Gianni Infantino. However, as of last month, Toure is no longer a member of the FIFA Council or the Confederation of African Football’s executive committee.
-Reuters
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The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has denied reports of an outstanding debt to former captain Christian Chukwu and has challenged anyone with verifiable documents to prove otherwise.
Chukwu, a former national team captain and chief coach, died last Saturday.
The Nigeria Football Federation decried statements in a section of social media that the football-ruling body was indebted to the deceased.
Reacting to one statement on social media that claimed NFF owed the 1980 Africa Cup of Nations-winning team captain the sum of $128,000, NFF General Secretary, Dr Mohammed Sanusi, said: “There is no record in the NFF of any outstanding indebtedness to ‘Chairman’ Christian Chukwu.
“During the first term of the Board headed by Amaju Pinnick, a committee was set up to diligently peruse the papers of coaches who were being owed, even from previous NFF administrations.
“That committee was given the clear mandate to verify all debts and ensure that the coaches being owed were paid immediately. I am aware that the ‘Chairman’ was in the employ of the NFF between 2002 and 2005, before he was relieved of the post following the 1-1 draw with Angola in a FIFA World Cup qualifying match in Kano in August 2005. There is certainly no record of indebtedness to him in the NFF.”
Sanusi challenged anyone with genuine and verifiable documents of NFF indebtedness to any coach, who has worked with any of the National Teams over the past two decades, to come forward and tender those documents.
“As a credible organization that is very much alive to its responsibilities, if we are confronted with any genuine document of indebtedness to any coach, we will offset the debt immediately.”
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