Nigeria’s Minister of Sports Development, Senator John Enoh, has raised serious concerns about the competence and decision-making of top officials at the Confederation of African Football CAF, Soccernet.ng reports.
This follows the appalling treatment the Super Eagles received in Libya, where they were scheduled to play an Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying match against the Mediterranean Knights.
The Nigerian team, along with its officials, were “held hostage” at an abandoned airport in Al-Abraq after their flight was diverted from its original destination in Benghazi.
Exhausted and dehydrated after spending 15 hours without food, water, or internet access, the Super Eagles decided to withdraw from the match against Libya.
On their return to Nigeria, CAF announced it would investigate the situation and take appropriate action.
However, Senator Enoh expressed disappointment, stating that the entire episode could have been avoided if the CAF had acted more diligently.
The Sports Minister revealed that, during an earlier conversation with CAF President Patrice Motsepe and the organization’s Secretary General, he had questioned why CAF had not immediately contacted Libyan authorities when the situation first unfolded.
Enoh drew a comparison to a previous incident when South Africa made a logistical error during a trip to Nigeria for a match in Uyo.
The South African contingent, just like their Libyan counterpart last week, had flown to Port Harcourt instead of directly to Uyo, leaving the Nigeria Football Federation scrambling to make alternative logistic plans.
On that occasion, South Africa-born Motsepe and his Secretary General swiftly intervened, putting pressure on the NFF to resolve the issue.
Enoh was troubled by the contrast in responses, noting that CAF acted decisively to assist South Africa but left Nigeria stranded in Libya with no immediate intervention.
“At some point, we also had some little issue with the South African team,” Enoh explained in an interview with Channels TV. “Again, not created by Nigeria but because of their insistence to prefer to land in Port Harcourt. This may be a different subject matter: Why would teams prefer to do that than fly straight to Uyo? Different subject matter.
“But I called the attention of CAF yesterday morning to the fact that when that happened and the NFF was even on the ground to sort out whatever logistics, CAF secretary general didn’t allow the (NFF) president one minute, it was continuous contact and pressure and all of that. And how come (that was not the case for Nigeria)?”
He continued:
“As of yesterday morning, it was already about 12, 13 hours (of the Nigerian delegation in Libya). I said, how come? 13 hours after our team is so subjected, there is no indication that CAF is in direct communication with the Libyan Football Federation.”
Senator Enoh also criticised CAF’s decision to allow Libya to host AFCON qualifiers despite the country’s ongoing political turmoil.
He speculated that even if CAF had tried to contact Libyan authorities, they might not have known which of the two factional governments to approach.
“It seems to me that the CAF president may not have known which (Libyan) authority to speak to,” Enoh said.
“It calls to question therefore, if there are such two authorities in Libya, does Libya offer a good environment, condition, and situation for international matches of this nature to be hosted in the country.”
CAF has yet to release its findings on the incident, and it remains unclear whether sanctions will be imposed on Libya, Nigeria, or both, depending on the investigation’s outcome.