The management of Shooting Stars Sports Club, 3SC, of Ibadan, wishes to call on the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, to allow justice and fairness prevail in its final decision making on the ongoing debate on how to end the 2019/20 season.
In a statement by the club’s Media Officer, Tosin Omojola, the management of rejected the resolution by clubs in the Nigeria Professional Football League, NPFL, calling for the cancelation of the entire season including that of the Nigeria National League, NNL, and other leagues.
“To put the record straight, we state unequivocally, that 3SC as a club, has no business dabbling into the issues of the NPFL, which is a separate league on its own”, the statement adds.
It notes that 3SC has no issue with NPFL clubs’ decision to end the season, using the Point Per Game (PPG) format to determine who wins the league and which teams pick continental tickets, however, the concern is centered on the resolution of the League Management Company or NPFL to call for the cancelation of the 2019/20 season of the NNL.
“We wish to state categorically here that, since the NNL is not an appendage of the NPFL, it has no right whatsoever to take any decision on the running of the NNL, therefore, approving the proposal of the NPFL by the NFF, is unreasonable, disrespectful and infringing on the right of clubs in the NNL”.
The statement further explains that the NFF should know, that giving its nod to the proposal, portends great danger for the Nigerian league, considering the fact that NNL clubs are also part of the league and therefore, deserved to be carried along in decision making as stakeholders.
The club regards the proposal of canceling the season as inhuman, unfair and high level wickedness as it showed that those behind it are less concerned about the 42 clubs participating in the NNL.
“For instance, 3SC as a club, started preparing for the 2019/20 season since a year ago and you will recall that the season did not start until the tail end of October”.
The release says in preparing for the season, human efforts and huge resources were involved and canceling the season, will amount to waste of human efforts and financial resources, pumped in by the financier of the club the Oyo State Government.
“We wonder why and how the risk of embarking on rigours and tortuous journeys to different parts of the country, with attendant insecurity in some places, coupled with taxpayers money spent on the club by its financier, were not considered by the apostles of NNL cancelation”.
The management points out that the money spent on securing the services of players from other clubs, securing licenses through the registration of the players, as well as huge money spent on officials, staff and other logistics for the season could not go down the drain.
Shooting stars management therefore opines that if the NFF eventually approves or accepts the use of PPG in the NPFL, same can be applied in the NNL, a playoff of the two top teams in each group of the NNL can be organized to determine the four clubs that will be promoted to the NPFL and since the NPFL clubs have agreed that no team will be relegated, then there could be a 24 team format just like in the 2017/18 season.
The club while appealing to the NFF to toe the path of honour, honesty and transparency in taking a decision that would be acceptable to every stakeholder in the Nigerian league, which of course include clubs in the NPFL, NNL, NLO and the NWPL for the good of the game and for the sake of fair play, which is the slogan of the world football governing body, FIFA, stresses the need for the Sport Ministry and other relevant bodies concerned to allow justice and fairness to be the order of the day in order to save the nation’s football.
Olaolu Fawole
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