Basketball: Nigerians petition FIBA over NBBF leadership dispute
In a petition signed by the group’s spokesman, Edward Morris, members called on FIBA to ensure that a fresh election of the NBBF Board is held before “the start of preparations of the upcoming Tokyo Olympics,”
They also demanded that the draft Constitution of the NBBF which the world body supervised with its inputs be ratified without delay.
The petition which was also sent to the Nigeria Olympic Committee, NOC and top shots of both factions of the NBBF said their members are worried because “our basketball is currently suffering from the inability to resolve the (2017) election issues (as) we currently have three lawsuits that have been filed and they are affecting our league”.
Stressing that the country’s world ranking “does not portray the real state of our basketball”, the group asked FIBA to “apply the same sense of urgency that was accorded other member nations (namely Russia and Phillipines) that had to endure similar controversies”.
Meanwhile they alleged that there is a deliberate effort by the African governing body to “sit back and watch the administration of Nigeria basketball continue to disintegrate because a well-functioning administration would be a threat to the leadership dominion of the current leadership under Alphonse Bile”.
They equally alleged that the body language of the world body which initiated the crisis resolution but stopped half way “shows that no new election would be held before 2021 contrary to its earlier position on this issue”.
