Tijani to stakeholders: Don’t allow crooks to hijack our basketball

 

President of the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF), Mallam Tijani Umar, has alerted various Stakeholders on the need to stand their ground and resist any attempt by interest group to hijack and destroy development of basketball in the country.

Umar who spoke when he declared open a three-day pre-season meeting and training for Players, Coaches, Referees, Technical Commissioners and other teams’ officials ahead of 2018 Kwese Premier basketball league opener maintained that the federation won’t be distracted even as apex Men domestic dunking and slamming game kicks-off May 6, 2018.

Talking about the delay in organising a fresh election within the federation, the NBBF Boss further said, “It’s a deliberate and sustainable attempt for the election to be delayed, if possible to be denied, it’s not possible. We are going to have the election. I want all stakeholders to know they are important to this election.

“You know where your representation is safe; you know where basketball is safe. Take the message back home. Let us put people who are responsible, accountable and will not serve themselves.

“Basketball is safe in our hands because we have secure and sustainable programmes in our hands, we have set up the young and enthusiasts stakeholders and all of them have paid their dues. We are not looking at basketball that we will use to cater for our families, appoint our brothers and assign portfolio for our relatives. We are here to contribute our own quota to the development of the basketball in Nigeria.

“The number one authority in basketball in the world today is FIBA, which is why they called for new election. If it was to be plan of some people, there would not be any election. I want to assure you that there would be new election, today, tomorrow or next, no matter how long the night, there is going to be a morning.

“We have seen the dividends of the crisis from June 17, 2017 till date. For an individual to manipulate a group and put federation in his pocket and appoint his family members and pocket the money we know their antecedent and we will not allow them. I am assuring you whatever way we are going to come top on it.”

At the moment, there is palpable anxiety in various quarters after over one month, FIBA is yet to fix a date for the proposed NBBF election.