Sports Elections: Ministers advises losers to accept defeat

Mr Solomon Dalung, the Minister of Youths and Sports, on Monday advised aggrieved persons at the just-concluded National Sports Federation elections to accept defeat in good fate.

Dalung gave the advice in a statement signed by Nneka Ikem-Anibeze, Special Assistant on Media to the Minister, in Abuja.

He said the claim by Rosa Collins of being robbed of her presidential mandate was wrong.

Collins contested the election as National Association of Women in Sports (NAWIS) representative on the Board of the Athletic Federation of Nigeria.

The minister said her claim of being robbed at the poll was a falsehood.

Dalung said that the act was a ploy to mask her inability to emerge as president of the Federation.

“This followed accusations in the media that the minister cancelled the by-elections as decided by the Electoral Appeals Committee into the Athletics Federation just to favour some unnamed groups.

“I do not wish to join issues with aggrieved persons over their defeat in the just concluded National Sports Federations elections, but I need to clear the air on some presumed falsehood about decisions taken by the Appeals Committee.

“The Appeals Committee entertained petitions from aggrieved persons after the elections and took decisions based on the facts available to them,’’ he said.

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Dalung said that in view of the additional information provided by those affected by committee’s decisions, which showed clear evidence that the Appeals Committee was misguided, some decisions were upheld while others were dismissed.

“In the Athletics Federation, for instance, there was a petition by one Charles Yayock from the North West Zone, who petitioned that he was denied the right to contest the zonal congress.

“He alleged that he was denied the right to contest the presidential election. The Appeals Committee said it was unlawful exclusion and that has affected the election, so the election was cancelled.

“Thereafter, the winner of the North West zonal election, Ibrahim Gusau who was affected, counter-petitioned the panel and provided evidence where Yayock was cleared to participate in the zonal election.

“Yayock got one vote against Gusau who got six. Based on these facts, the appeal by Yayock to hold a re-run was dismissed.

“In the case of Rosa Collins, her name was replaced by Dr Gloria Obajimi, who did not contest the NAWIS election. The Appeals Committee reviewed the case with evidence and reinstated Collins.

“Brown Ebewele, who was also replaced by Gad Onwuamegbu on the Technical and Coaches committee, was also reinstated.

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“Collins alleged that she was not allowed to contest the presidential elections but the winner, Gusau, again provided additional evidence that showed that Collins contested the same election and got two against 48 votes.

“On the strength of that, the Appeals Committee in its review judgment recommended to the Harmonisation Committee that the facts outweighed the allegation; therefore, the election should be upheld.

“It was the review report of the Appeals Committee that came to the Harmonisation Committee which, in turn, took the entire reviewed appeals one after the other and affirmed them,” Dalung explained.

Dalung said that the Legal Department of the ministry would not hesitate to file legal proceedings against individuals or group of people who initiated a smear campaign against the ministry.