NPFL: Why Club Owners voted to end league, by Pastor Inyama

Harry Awurumibe, Abuja

More facts have emerged why the majority members of the Football Club Owners Association of Nigeria (Club Owners) voted for the end of the 2019/2020 Nigeria Professional Football Leaque (NPFL) season.

No fewer than 17 Club Owners out of 20 members had over the weekend voted to finally end the current season which has been forced to a halt since March by the novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic which is still ravaging the World including Nigeria even as some more advanced countries like France and Holland have ended their football leagues for health reasons.

An influential member of the Club Owners Association and Chairman of Abia Warriors FC of Um uahia, Pastor Emeka Inyanma who voted in favour of the Leaque Management Company (LMC) to end the 2019/2020 season using the Point Per Game (PPG) model said it is the best option under the circumstance the country’s football league finds itself.

According to him,” I am one of the Club Owners who voted to finally end the Leaque for obvious reasons which I believe are germane. The current health situations in the country does not support football returning too soon. How many clubs can afford testing their players, coaching crew and support staffers twice in a week and still pay cost of traveling and monthly salaries. I think with the economic downturn occasioned by Covid-19 pandemic, the best option is to end the league now hence I so voted”.

Pastor Inyama who is a former Executive Member of the Board of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) also argued that he and other members who voted to finally end the Leaque acted in the best interest of the game, adding that, “the lives of footballers and indeed, every Nigerian should be more important than returning to football field in the face of the daily increase in the number of people testing positive to Covid-19 in Nigeria”.

Meanwhile, both the LMC and the parent body, NFF have said that they are yet to take decisions on the resolution reached by the Club Owners to end finally the league just as the NFF GeneralSecretary, Dr. Muhammed Sanusi has told the media that the football ruling body is still consulting with the stakeholders and decision will be taken in one or two days time.