Counsel to the Amaju Pinnick-led Nigerian Football Federation (NFF), Festus Keyamo, yesterday clarified that no court sacked his clients and installed Mr. Chris Giwa as the NFF president.

He has also called on government to arrest Giwa if he attempted to breach public peace at the NFF secretariat today.

Keyamo, who said he is also counsel to the defendants in Suit No. FHC/J/CS/77/2016 between Yahaya Adama & Anor. V. Maigari & others, which is before a Federal High Court, Jos, insisted that the information was false.

According to him, the misconstrued order arose from the stated case and parties, adding that neither the NFF nor Pinnick were parties in the suit upon which the court order emanated.

His clarification was contained in a statement he released yesterday in Lagos.
He said: “Our attention has been drawn to several media reports to the effect that the Federal High Court sitting in Jos sacked the Board of the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF), led by Mr. Amaju Pinnick and installed Mr. Chris Giwa as the new Chairman of the NFF.

“This is nothing but total and complete falsehood. We are constrained to issue this statement to set the records straight owing to the sensitive nature of football administration in Nigeria.

“For the purpose of clarity, at no time did the Honourable Court order the installation of one Chris Giwa as Chairman of the NFF as neither Chris Giwa nor Amaju Pinnick are parties to the present suit in Jos. It is therefore a distortion of the Order of the Honourable Court to assume that Chris Giwa was ordered to resume as the Chairman of the NFF.

“The Supreme Court of Nigeria has held times without number that no court of law can issue an order against a person that is not a party in a suit before a court without joining or hearing from that party. And no court of law can also install a party in an office who is not before the Court praying for such an Order.

“The said Chris Giwa is not a party before the case at the Federal High Court and the Court never made an Order installing him as NFF President. It is like the bizarre case of the proxies of a loser in an election suing only INEC without joining the other victorious party in the case.”

He stated that what Giwa is attempting to do is nothing but sheer brigandage, adding that the NFF should write to all authorities concerned to arrest and prosecute Giwa if he dared to take the laws into his hands.