Nigerian League controversy: Nembe City asks to be included in on-going season

Club was asked to dissociate from its proprietor, Victor Baribote.

The Chairman of Nembe City FC of Bayelsa, Ebiakpo Baribote, has written to the League Management Company, LMC, asking it to readmit the club into the Nigeria Professional Football League, NPFL.

The letter submitted to the LMC in Abuja on Wednesday stated that the club had met the conditional registration requirement for the on-going NPFL season.

“I wish to formally notify you that Nembe City FC of Bayelsa State hereby declares that the club has no case(s) instituted against the LMC or the NFF in any court of law. Furthermore, we wish to forward to you the list of board members as follows: Ebiakpo Baribote, Chairman; James Eneware, Vice Chairman; and David Ikputu, Team Manager. The others are: Blessing Baribote, Secretary; Enowo Johnson, Member; Irene Wabara and Maxwell Sami are member.

“In light of the above, kindly accept the undersigned as the official signatory of the club. The same goes for other board member who may be delegated to carry out official assignment for and or on behalf of the club,” Mr. Baribote wrote.

Mr. Baribote’s letter followed an ultimatum by the LMC to meet some of the conditions the club had failed to meet earlier, latest by close of work on Wednesday.

The conditions, included the dissociation of the club from dealings with its proprietor, Victor Baribote, allegedly serving a 15 year ban imposed by the Nigeria Football Association, NFA.

According to the LMC, the club had not provided any proof of discontinuation of the cases Victor instituted against the LMC and NFA, which necessitated his ban.

Meanwhile, Victor said in a telephone interview on Wednesday that he had no hand in the management of the club. He said the NFA and the LMC could not intimidate him out of his club, in spite of him giving it out to other people to manage.

“They said government can own a club but that they cannot manage it. For example, Bayelsa State government has given its club to a management team, so, Bayelsa government has nothing to do with Bayelsa United. Somebody cannot be stopped from supervising a company he is putting his money in. They cannot intimidate me because I am a Nigerian who has the right to own a property. I am not in the management team, so I cannot relate with them (LMC and NFA), but they cannot tell me that I cannot relate with my club,” he said.

Giwa FC of Jos, the other club excluded from the league by the LMC, was on Wednesday granted provisional approval to participate in the 2013/2014 season.

The LMC said Giwa substantially met four of the requirements listed by the NFA at its emergency meeting that considered the appeal by the two clubs after their exclusion from the league.

(NAN)