The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has declared zero tolerance against all perceived acts that could encourage match manipulation in any form, warning its members and other stakeholders in the game to steer clear of such practices.
Ahead of the 2019/2020 Nigeria Professional Football League season due to kick off on Sunday, 3rd November, the NFF has revealed its readiness to closely monitor everyone involved in the round leather game in the country, especially its own members, including Members of Congress, stakeholders, referees, match commissioners and referee assessors, and to punish anyone caught in any wrongdoing.
“It is important that NFF members, including Members of Congress, stakeholders, referees, match commissioners and referee assessors, and indeed everyone involved in the game, resist and report all acts that may seek to compromise the integrity of a game,” Barrister Okey Obi, head of the NFF Integrity Unit, was quoted by the Guardian as monitored by Soccernet.ng.
“The NFF will monitor actions and inaction within the perspectives of errors in decisions, which could be classified as: 1) Error of Judgment 2) Error of Knowledge and 3) Deliberate Act.
“The NFF is on a wavelength of zero tolerance for match fixing and match manipulation in any way. The Federation will come down hard on anyone involved in any practice that may seek to bring the game to disrepute.
“The eyes of FIFA and CAF are now very, very sharp with regards to match-fixing and match manipulation matters. Apart from that, the various security agencies in the land are now taking keen interest in what happens during football matches, a development the NFF is happy about. The NFF Integrity Unit is now working in conjunction with the security agencies to monitor all matches.
“It will no longer be business as usual. Members of NFF especially match officials are warned against going to match venues to the front for teams,” Barrister Obi warned.