Ajibade Olusesan 
- Motsepe returns, Eto’o, others make board of African body …as NSC, Obi urge former NFF boss to take heart
Former Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) President, Amaju Pinnick, has lost his bid to retain his seat on the FIFA Council. In a tightly contested election at the 14th CAF Extraordinary Congress in Cairo, Egypt, yesterday, Pinnick, who gained the seat four years ago, missed out by just one vote.
By implication, Nigeria has no representation on word football’s highest decision making body.
Pinnick, who is the third Nigerian in FIFA Council, secured 28 votes, falling short of Mauritania’s Ahmed Yahya and Djibouti’s Souleman Hassan Waberi, who both got 29 votes to claim two of the the seven available seats.
Morocco’s Fouzi Lekjaa dominated the poll with 49 votes, while Egypt’s Hany Abou Rida and Niger’s Djibrilla Hima Hamidou secured 35 votes each.
The FIFA Council, which oversees global football matters, will now have representatives from Morocco, Egypt, Niger, Mauritania, and Djibouti, alongside CAF President Patrice Motsepe, who was re-elected unopposed.
Kanizat Ibrahim from Comoros won the women’s seat with 30 votes. Many Nigerians were surprised by Pinnick’s loss, but those familiar with African football politics may have anticipated it.
A growing campaign pushed for only sitting Presidents of national football federations to be considered for FIFA representation, making Pinnick’s re-election difficult and a renewed political alliance within the Francophone bloc made his case worse.
His defeat was a setback for football politics in Anglophone West Africa, especially since Motsepe, A South African, remains the only Englishspeaking representative from Africa on FIFA’s executive board.
Sources revealed that Pinnick, once regarded as one of the most influential figures in African football, was seen as a threat by key power brokers.
His strong influence reportedly worked against him, raising questions about why his close ally, Motsepe, whom he played a crucial role in electing as CAF President, did little to secure his seat.
“Sadly the anglophone voice will be missing in the FIFA Council and it is left to imagine what his (Pinnick’) staunch friends, Gianni Infantino and Patrice Motsepe would be whispering to him,” veteran sports journalist and former Africa Sports Journalists Union President, Mitchell Obi said.
“Sometimes to play the game you must only be useful as they think you are useful.
Just like he worked extremely hard and wide to get Ahmad (former CAF President) elected and then got betrayed so also today we are counting on a president whom he virtually nominated, sold and canvassed to us all for his acclamation.
Motsepe does not like to stay in Cairo but he must find favour in finding a befitting role for a friend in deed and need. Can we see a co-opted member of the CAF Exco from Nigeria?”
Meanwhile, in the CAF Executive Committee elections, alongside Motsepe who was reelected as President, Cameroon football legend Samuel Eto’o (UNIFFAC) and Ghana’s Kurt EdwinSimeon Okraku (WAFU B) were also among those elected unopposed.
