* How former NFF Boss Stirred The Hornet’s Nest
* Intrigues As Singer Exposes Pinnick As Wanna-Be Bourgeois
* Internet Recalls His $8.4m Scandal As Football Administrator
Conceit is the flimsiest armour Amaju Pinnick could wear. The former President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), like the proverbial child of the one-legged cripple, who dared to gift his father a complete pair of shoes, has stirred the hornet’s nest with his attack on afrobeat musician, David Adeleke aka Davido.
Soon after he called out Davido for failing to perform at the 19th edition of Warri Again, despite being paid $94,600, Pinnick has been the butt of scathing chastisement and ridicule on social media platforms.
The FIFA Executive Member speaking on Friday during the 19th edition of Warri Again, claimed that the organisers also booked a private jet for $18,000 for the ‘Unavailable Crooner’ but that he never showed up.
He said the organisers had to shop for another artiste, Shallipopi as the replacement.
“We paid Davido $94,600 on the 6th of April. We paid $18,000 for his plane.
“If he says he’s a big boy, we will tell him we are bigger than him. I’m not joking. So, while he was playing his games back and forth, we decided to hunt to find another artiste, Shallipopi.
“You see, when people say they are big, I’m amazed. Is Burna Boy not the biggest artiste in Nigeria today? Burna Boy is half Itsekiri. Burna Boy’s paternal grandmother is Itsekiri. So, he’s bigger than him (Davido).
“Is there anyone bigger than RMD in the acting industry? Or someone bigger than Ali Baba in the comedy industry? We have stars aplenty in Warri. Nobody is bigger than Warri,” he said, suggesting that the singer needed to be taught a lesson as he was becoming too proud
Not a few people have condemned Pinnick over his outburst. While many condemn him for trying to incite ethnic bigotry against Davido among his Warri fans, others berate him for resorting to gutter language and tactics.
But in what appears like a shade on the former NFF boss; Davido wrote via his X handle, “Throwing stones but u dey live for glass house.” In another post, Davido bragged that nobody could stop him from performing anywhere in Nigeria, assuring his fans in Warri that he would be in their city soon.
“Nobody can stop me from performing anywhere in Nigeria… Warri I will see you soon,” he wrote.
He also posted a picture of the Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, logo with the caption; “Make I no talk.”
Davido hinted that if he would refund any money, it wouldn’t be to Pinnick. He wrote: “If I’m returning any money, I’ll return it to any football charity organisation. Infact, I will double it…Mr Dream Crusher…Imagine how many Nigerian footballers have had their dreams crushed because person wan live for Ikoyi by force (sic).”
Following the singer’s subtle retort, a lot of posts surfaced on social media recalling how the NFF maltreated Nigerian footballers on Pinnick’s watch.
A particular post stated, “Breaking: NFF abandons Nigeria’s Falconets, team sleep on airport’s bare floor, stranded in Turkey after buying own boots, others.”
Many alleged that Pinnick ruined footballing in Nigeria by his incompetence and shoddy approach to team management before and after major tournaments. Some accused him of diverting grants given to NFF to fund his vanities.
Pinnick lives in a big apartment in Parkview. Ikoyi, Lagos, where he flaunts his garage of expensive cars. Whenever he wishes to relax, he retires to his beautiful Ilase beach house, where he lives in opulence that clearly surpasses his earnings as NFF boss.
In the wake of his tiff with Davido, a lot of people have lamented Pinnick’s shameful tenure as NFF boss, among other things. Despite failures in major competitions and inability to qualify for the last World Cup, the Pinnick-led NFF received and squandered billions in seven years, according to pundits.
The Nigerian government disbursed to the NFF about N15 billion since 2015 through budgetary appropriations and presidential interventions, despite the abysmal performances of various Nigerian football teams in continental and world competitions.
Aside from his dismal run as NFF boss, Pinnick was involved in several scandals during his tenure. For instance, on May 2, 2019, a Nigerian court ordered the NFF to provide the chargesheet for Amaju Pinnick in an alleged FIFA grant scandal. On May 7, 2019, the Special Presidential Investigation Panel for the Recovery of Public Property filed a 17-count charge against Pinnick and three other NFF scribes.
Pinnick and cohorts were charged for allegedly misappropriating $8.4 million paid by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) to NFF as an appearance fee at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Pinnick was also charged with not declaring his assets according to the Code of Conduct Bureau Act.
In Pinnick’s defence, the NFF stated that their PricewaterhouseCoopers audited accounts were published publicly and FIFA has the exclusive rights and competence to investigate and judge the conduct of persons bound by their code of ethics as regards to funds and that their petition against the allegation had been filed in the Federal High Court, Abuja.
On January 5, 2019, publications were made by several news agencies alleging fraud in the NFF. Pinnick was also supposedly placed on a travel ban by the Department of State Security (DSS) pending an investigation that was reportedly ordered by former President Muhammadu Buhari. On January 6, 2019, the Presidency of Nigeria made a press release stating that it had neither ordered the arrest nor placed a travel ban on the former NFF president.
