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    Reps launch probe into NFF over $25m FIFA, CAF grants

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    The House of Representatives has resolved to set up a Special Investigative Committee to probe how the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) and the Confederation of African Football (CAF) managed financial grants totaling $25 million.

    The decision followed the adoption of a motion of urgent public importance co-sponsored by Lagos lawmaker Adedayo Adesola and his Rivers counterpart Felix Nwaeke during Tuesday’s plenary.

    Titled “Motion to Stop Further Misuse of FIFA and CAF Grants by the Nigerian Football Federation,” the motion spotlighted persistent allegations of financial mismanagement within Nigeria’s football administration.

    Adopted unanimously under the leadership of Speaker Tajudeen Abbas, the motion charged the House to take decisive action to address the misuse of public funds, particularly with major tournaments such as the African Cup of Nations and World Cup play-offs approaching.

    Adesola, who moved the motion, linked the alleged “mismanagement of grants by the global football governing body” to the steady decline in Nigeria’s football performance in recent years.

    He recalled that in December 2016, “FIFA sent an audit query over the mishandling of $1.1 million development grant to NFF, noting that $802,000 lacked proper documentation,” which led the then Sports Minister, Solomon Dalung, to order an independent audit of the NFF’s accounts.

    The lawmaker further referenced recurring controversies involving the NFF between 2018 and 2019, when officials, including then-president Amaju Pinnick, faced investigations by the EFCC and ICPC over alleged fund mismanagement.

    He noted that one of the funds in question—$1.2 million—was reportedly used to construct the Birnin Kebbi Stadium, a project whose poor quality “does not justify the claimed expenditure.”

    Comparing Nigeria’s situation to Kenya’s, Adesola said, “The Kenyan Football Federation used a similar grant to build a standard, well-equipped facility—further highlighting the profligacy at the NFF.”

    Following deliberations, the House resolved to establish a Special Investigative Committee to examine NFF’s financial records from 2015 to date and summon its leadership to present detailed documentation of grant receipts and expenditures.

    The probe marks one of the most extensive parliamentary investigations into Nigerian football finances in years — a move that could redefine transparency and accountability in the nation’s most cherished sport.

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