The last may not have been heard of the
N244m Nigeria Football League Limited broadcast rights money, as
football stakeholders have raised eyebrows over how the money was spent
by the Club Owners Association, a group not recognised in the Articles
and Memorandum of the NFLL.
The National Association of Nigerian
Footballers had petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
seeking the release of the money by broadcast rights holder Total
Promotions. On the directive of the ant-graft agency, Total Promotions
lodged the N244m, which was part of the money for three league seasons,
with the Lagos division of the EFCC on June 23, 2016.
Last week, SUNDAY PUNCH
reported that the N244m was allegedly transferred from the NFLL Zenith
Bank account to the club owners account by Tunji Babalola (NFLL account
signatory A) and Esther Adesuyi (NFLL account signatory B) after it was
lodged in the NFLL account by the EFCC in November 2016.
Aside the total sum of N120m paid to 25
clubs from the money, how the broadcast rights money was shared has
largely been shrouded in secrecy.
Each club that participated during the
three seasons were each entitled to N2m per season from the broadcast
rights money, which means a total of N120m was paid to 25 clubs.
Thirteen clubs namely Akwa United,
Bayelsa United, Dolphin (defunct), Enyimba, El Kanemi, Heartland, Kano
Pillars, Lobi Stars, Nasarawa United, Enugu Rangers, Sharks (defunct),
Sunshine Stars and Warri Wolves, who participated in the three seasons,
were entitled to N6m each.
Gombe United, Giwa FC, Nembe, Kaduna
United, Kwara United, Taraba United, Wikki Tourists, 3SC and Abia
Warriors played in two seasons and should receive N4m each while ABS,
Crown and IfeanyUbah played a season and were entitled to N2m each.
Adesuyi said she was not aware of how
the money was spent or shared after she and Babalola facilitated the
transfer of the money from the NFLL account.
“What I know is that I and Tunji signed
to move the money from the Nigeria Football League (account) to club
owners’ account. They are the ones that disbursed the money. We moved
N243m to club owners’ account and the money was paid to some people that
we owe,” she added.
But she confessed that she was given “little” from the N244m but refused to state how much she collected.
“As a signatory, I have been moving
around with fuel and for the stress, they gave me little and they said
by the time they (Total Promotions) pay the remaining money (N100m),
they will still try to do something more,” she stated.
For writing the petition against Total Promotions, NANF was given N24m (10 per cent of the money) by the club owners.
However, the N24m seems to have split
NANF into two factions after it was paid into an account operated by the
Larry Kubeinje group.
In reaction to the first part of the
story, NANF in a statement signed by its president Harrison Jalla,
titled ‘Re: Crisis rocks Nigerian football over N244m Tv money’ and
dated February 20, 2017, said the initial arrangement was for the NFLL
to share the money to the beneficiaries, but alleged that Babalola
diverted the process in favour of the club owners led by Nasarawa United
chairman Isaac Danladi.
The statement read, “The money was to be
disbursed by the Baribote (NFLL) board. The EFCC actually contacted
Chief Rumson Baribote to set up a committee for the disbursement being
the immediate past chairman of NFL but Baribote at the time was
unavailable as he is currently pursuing a law degree at the Osun State
University.
“It was Tunji Babalola that deliberately shifted the disbursement to Isaac Danladi led Club Owners Association.
“As we speak, the disbursement of the
N244m has been shrouded in secrecy; even the percentage to NANF was
diverted to an illegal account with the connivance of Isaac Danladi.
That matter is currently under police investigation.”
The statement added, “The idea behind
NANF’s petition was to recover several millions of naira of football
money to ensure the outstanding salaries, allowances and contract fees
of players, coaches, and managers were paid; the Sterling Bank loan of
N128m to the Nigeria Football League was serviced, outstanding debts of
NFL paid and running cost of the Nigeria Football League secretariat is
set aside. None of the above initiative was achieved; the N244m was
frittered away by frivolous claims.
“I, Jalla, the progenitor of the idea to
get the TV rights money paid to the Nigeria Football League never saw
any list containing the disbursement and payment schedule to the
beneficiaries. NANF wants to use this opportunity to assure all football
stakeholders that it will immediately initiate proceedings to compel
Isaac Danladi to publish the list of beneficiaries and schedule of
payment of the N244m. Football stakeholders reserve the right to know
how the N244m was disbursed being a public fund.”
Danladi denied Jalla’s claims, saying he never connived with Kubeinje to divert the N24m meant for NANF.
He said, “Kubeinje collected the draft
with the consent of Harrison. I was there; there was even a meeting
before the cheque was handed over.
“Who wrote the petition? It is
Kubeinje’s name that is on the petition. That was the argument, because
if it was Kubeinje that wrote it, even if it was on behalf of somebody,
we felt it should be given to him (Kubeinje) so that he could give it to
whoever directed him. If he didn’t deliver it, how is that the problem
of the club owners?”
In another letter dated February 23,
titled N244m TV Rights and addressed to Danladi, NANF requested him
(Danladi) to “urgently publish the full list of beneficiaries of the
N244m.”
The players union stated that its name
was at stake and urged Danladi to release the list of beneficiaries
within seven days or face the wrath of the law.
“The N244m being public fund, it would
only be appropriate and in consonance with the current government of
President Muhammadu Buhari’s zero tolerance to corruption, that you
(Danladi) make a publication of the full list of the beneficiaries of
the TV rights money to put the controversy to a permanent rest,” the
letter to Danladi read.
It added, “But should you fail or refuse
to do the needful within seven days of your receipt of this letter, we
shall have no option but compel you within the ambit of the law.”
Danladi on Thursday acknowledged receipt
of the letter. “I got it (letter) but I don’t have anything to say
because the club owners association is not answerable to NANF. I have to
show the letter to my members,” he stated.
Meanwhile, Secretary General of the
National Association of Nigerian Professional Footballers Austin Popo
has alleged that players and coaches, who should have been part of the
beneficiaries, were left out, claiming that it was the officials that
benefitted mainly from the money disbursed to the clubs.
He stated, “We learnt that some past
chairmen and officials of the Nigeria Premier League were also paid
monies for their services and expenses rendered the league body, while
the players and coaches who produced the funds based on their collective
image rights, were never considered in spite of our numerous appeals to
the club owners and the clubs to pay the affected players and coaches.
“Nigerians must know how the money was
shared. Some club chairmen collected N6m and gave nothing to players and
these are people who were not even there when this money was
generated. My concern is that only one player was paid N500,000 by
Bayelsa United from the over N1m they owe him. I was calling all the
club chairmen who promised that they will pay the players once they were
paid from the N244m. But as soon as they got the money, they stopped
picking my calls.”
Popo said the players union, which is affiliated to the Trade Union Congress, had also petitioned the Senate over the issue.
“We wrote a petition to the Senate
Committee on Sports. The club owners should be invited to tell the world
how the money was shared because the information we received is that
even past chairmen of the Nigeria Premier League collected some money.
“They said some people (NANF) wrote the
petition and the club owners entered an agreement with the petitioners
(NANF) to pay them (NANF) N24m. And these are people who claim they are
players union; they collected money and didn’t find out if the players
they claimed to be representing actually collected the money. So, let us
see the schedule of payment and let the whole world know why they
didn’t pay players who are the main actors. It’s unfortunate.”
A legal practitioner Rilwan Alli called
on the security agencies to properly investigate how the money was spent
by the club owners.
He stated, “If you look at the records
available here, up until today, there’s no functional (NFLL) board. So,
if there’s no functional board that can manage the affairs of the NFLL,
on whose authority was the money transferred to NANF or the club owners?
In fact, it’s a clear question of collision; there is fraud somewhere
that needs to be investigated.
“Not until this fraud is brought to the
knowledge of Nigerians, we won’t have rest. If there’s no board, there’s
nobody who can give authority for the N244m to be transferred. And
since there’s nobody that has given an authority to transfer, then it
means there is a fraud for having transferred the money to the club
owners account.”
Factional President of the Nigeria
Football Federation Chris Giwa also raised the alarm over what he termed
“the mysterious disappearance” of the N244m paid into the NFLL account
by the Lagos division of the EFCC.
The management committee of the NFLL,
installed by Giwa’s faction of the NFF, claimed that they made several
efforts to stop Zenith Bank Wuse branch from releasing the money to the
club owners to no avail.
“When we heard that the Union Bank draft
(of the N244m) had been domiciled in the NFLL account in Zenith Bank,
on November 6, 2016, I wrote to Zenith Bank, Area 3, Wuse branch, on
November 7, 2016, informing them that no transaction should be allowed
to take place in the account. When the letter was taken to the bank in
the morning at 7.30am, the bank didn’t acknowledge it,” Kasali Obanoyen,
NFLL secretary said.
“When the letter was rejected by the
bank, I did another letter same day detailing and reaffirming that the
NFLL is aware that the money has not been moved and it should not be
moved. And that Babalola no longer has such a mandate to give directive
to the bank on how money should be spent by a new board headed by Dr.
Sam Sam Jaja,” Obanoyen added.
He alleged that some of those in charge
of the N244m dangled a cash offer at him, for him to withdraw his
earlier letter to the bank.
He stated, “As a matter of fact, I was
told that I was going to be given money if I would see it fit again to
write another letter to the bank indicating that my first letter should
be jettisoned, but I saw that as a booby-trap. My integrity would not be
tarnished by money that does not belong to me. When they dangled their
carrot, I told them they could go and eat their carrot, even though it
would not digest appropriately in their stomachs.
“I was subjected and inundated by
pressure from them, if I had any interest. But I said ‘no.’ This money
belongs to the NFLL. If anything needs to be done, a decision should be
taken by the board. I was never a party to how the money was spent.”
Meanwhile, the headquarters of the NFLL
on 30, Karaye Close, Garki II, Abuja, has been taken over by Sterling
Bank. The property was acquired through a N100m loan from Equitorial
Bank (now Sterling Bank) in 2009 but till date, the NFLL has been unable
to pay back any amount to the bank, which left stakeholders wondering
why the club owners didn’t pay the bank from the broadcast rights money.
Before the property was taken over by
the bank, a major part of it was lying in ruins and abandonment.
Adesuyi, said they were hoping to pay off the loan collected from the
bank when Total Promotions paid the remaining N100m, the balance of the
broadcast rights money.
She stated, “We still owe some people,
especially this (NFLL) house. They said by the time Total Promotions pay
the balance (of N100m), they will use it to pay for the house.”
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