National Sports Commission director-general Bukola Olopade, said former Nigeria Football Federation president Amaju Pinnick, tried his best to win back his FIFA Council seat at the CAF Extraordinary General Assembly held in Cairo, Egypt Wednesday.
Mr. Olopade disclosed that Pinnick who held the position of FIFA Council member since 2021 faced challenges and political maneuvering yet was still able to secure 28 votes one short of his opponents’ 29.
He stated that during the CAF congress it was politics and Pinnick was put at a disadvantage being that he was not a federation president.
Olopade said ” I came to Egypt along with the Chairman of the NSC, Shehu Dikko as directed by President Bola Tinubu to give him all the necessary support.
“And We saw first hand how the politics of only serving Chairmen of Federations should and must emerge, but despite this, he lost only narrowly by one vote.
” I am sure if the canceled paper was counted, just maybe we could have seen a three way 29 tie”.
The DG said Pinnick must be proud of himself despite the loss and his passion for the growth of the game is very evident for all to see while expressing confidence that the temporary setback will only propel him to greater heights in his already accomplished career.
