Once again, officials of Nigeria Football Federation NFF and the Sports Minister, Sunday Dare will soon appear before an Abuja High Court to defend themselves in a suit instituted against them by a group, Legal Advocacy for the Advancement of Football in Nigeria, LAAFN,
The suit against the two parties came following their refusal to constitute the Players’ Status Committee and Arbitration Tribunal.
The legal advocacy group filed a suit at the Federal High Court on Tuesday against the NFF and Sports Minister in Suit No.
FHC/ABJ/CS/1303/2020 seeking an order of mandamus under Order 34 Rules 1 & 3 of the FHC Civil Procedure Rules 2019.
The order sought is one to compel the Minister and NFF to comply with Articles 53 and 68-69 of the NFF Statutes as well as Sec 19(1)-(2) of the NFA Act LFN 2004 for the constitution of the Players’ Status Committee and Arbitration Tribunal.
The process filed by Barristers Abdulhaleem Amin and Timbee Kenneth, Heads of Litigation and Mediation & Arbitration respectively, is meant to call both the Minister and NFF to order.
It would be recalled that the group, Legal Advocacy for the Advancement of Football in Nigeria, had asked the country’s football federation to constitute the Players’ Status Committee and Arbitration Tribunal as required by Articles 53 and 68-69 of the NFF Statute, 2010 to help solve the plight of the players but the NFF ignored the call.
Upon their refusal, the Legal Advocacy Group, in a letter to the Minister, urged him to exercise his power over the NFF as contained in Sec.19 sub 1 & 2 part VII of the Nigeria Football Association Act, LFN 2004, by directing the Federation to do the needful in ensuring the welfare of the players but that has not been done for the past one month thereby prompting the Legal Advocacy Group to now go to court.
The NFF officials are currently battling court cases with regards to corruption allegations against them by Nigeria’s anti-corruption agency, the Economic and Fanatical Crimes Commission, EFCC.
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