₦70 Million Litigation Against Pinnick : Jalla Picks Hole With Publication, Says He’s Only Defending Himself

Chairman of Advocacy for Nigeria Football Reform Initiative, Harrison Jalla has faulted publications in some online medium advising him to stop his litigation in a British Court against one time President of Nigeria Football Federation, ( NFF) Amaju Melvin Pinnick; saying that his action is to defend himself

It would be recalled that in a publication titled
‘ Why Can’t Harrison Jalla Just Let Pinnick Go, they advised Jalla to stop dragging Pinnick to a foreign court as the issue of the #70 million has been settled by a Court of competent jurisdiction in the country.

Reacting to the publication, he stated that The publishers of those stories should know, that it is their principal who has been prosecuting and persecuting him since 2021, using the Police and, if possible, compromising the courts to protect his ill-gotten wealth by all possible means.

“My attention, and that of the Advocacy for Nigeria Football Reform Initiative, has been drawn to the above-titled publications circulating on social media, in which a former NFF president who sponsored the publications is playing the victim.

“The publishers of those empty stories should know, if they are not aware, that it is their principal who has been prosecuting and persecuting me since 2021, using the police and, if possible, compromising the courts to protect his ill-gotten wealth by all possible means.

“Let us assume, but not concede, that I even bidded for a ₦70 million public project, as is being falsely propagated. Is that a crime? I am not even a contractor and have never been. If I needed a job or favour from the NFF, there were former credible NFF presidents to approach before charlatans took over the affairs of NFF leadership.

He further explained that he has been on appeal in the case insituted against him by Pinnick since 2021 at the Court of Appeal, Asaba noting that if not for God’s intervention, and his good lawyers; Chief Victor Otomiewo, former Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice of Delta State, and Chief Rumson Baribote, as well as other good friends and relations who rallied around him, the plan was to keep him in detention until after the NFF elections, which he said happened after he underwent a complicated medical surgery, with certified medical reports.

“At a time, my wife and children were harassed by a team of policemen, one of whom posed as a DHL staff member and called my wife on the phone to receive a purported parcel, in a bid to get her arrested for her husband’s purported offence.

“I was detained in Sapele Prison for seven days before I could perfect my bail, which was deliberately laced with stringent conditions.

Jalla stated that he has not lifted a finger yet to fight the former NFF President and that he’s only acting in self-defence and will surely fight back at the appropriate time.

“The case in the United Kingdom arose from the investigation of his own testimony on oath in court in Nigeria, which his sponsored publications have not addressed.

One of the patriotic missions of our Advocacy is to return NFF stolen funds back to the NFF treasury and no blackmail or intimidation can stop that.

“We maintain that one of the former NFF president’s properties in the United Kingdom is located at Regent Plaza Apartment, 6 Greville Road, NW6 5HU. The property was bought in cash at the cost of £700,000 on 10th December 2015, a year and three months after assuming office as NFF president.”

‘We also alleged illicit flows of funds and questionable bank transfers running into several millions of US dollars, as well as diverted FIFA grants.

“These are the issues we expect him to go and debunk in the United Kingdom and stop resorting to blackmailing and using the police to intimidate the messengers, because there is more to come”, concluded Jalla.