As Nigerians look forward to a new board of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) later this year, United States-based former Super Eagles and Flying Eagles player, Paul Okoku, has said that there is a lot to learn from Ghana’s 124-member Congress, which distributes electoral power across a much broader football constituency.

The NFF’s new Congress has 54 votes, with chairmen of State Football Associations (FA) and the FCT accounting for 37 of the votes.

Many stakeholders have complained about the power given to the State FAs, and want an expanded Congress that will give others a level playing ground to choose their leader.

In his article, titled: “NFF Elections, Who Really Owns The Vote?” Okoku said the contrast between the NFF and what is obtainable in Ghana raises an important question about representation, balance and the future of Nigerian football governance.

“As Nigeria approaches another NFF election, much of the attention will naturally focus on the candidates. Who should become president? Who deserves a place on the Executive Committee?

“Who has the experience, independence, credibility and vision to move Nigerian football forward?

“Those questions matter. But there is another question that comes before all of them: Who gets to choose the people who run Nigerian football?”

According to Okoku, an election is shaped not only by the candidates on the ballot, but also by the composition of the electorate.

“That is why the structure of the NFF Congress deserves serious examination. Nigeria does not have to travel to Europe to find an instructive comparison. It can look across West Africa to Ghana.

“Ghana does not have a perfect football administration, and this article does not suggest that Nigeria should simply copy Ghana’s constitution.

“But Ghana offers something useful, a different way of distributing electoral power among football stakeholders.

“Nigeria has expanded its congress, but 37 of 54 votes remain in one constituency.

“For years, discussions about NFF elections centred on the familiar 44-vote congress. That figure is no longer current. Under the NFF statutes adopted in Yenagoa on March 23, 2026, Congress consists of 108 delegates exercising 54 votes. The allocation is: 36 State Football Associations plus the FCT (37 votes), Nigeria Premier Football League (one vote), top five NPFL clubs from the most recently completed season (five votes), Nigeria National League (one vote), most recent NNL champion (one vote), Nigeria Nationwide League (one vote), Nigeria Women’s Football League (one vote), most recent NWFL champion (one vote), Beach Soccer and Futsal (one vote), Special Football Association (one vote), Coaches Association (one vote), Referees Association (one vote), NFF-recognised Players Association (one vote), Physical and Health Education, Recreation and Sports Association (one vote), Total: 54 votes.

“The increase from 44 to 54 represents a genuine expansion of the electorate. But expansion alone does not settle the question of balance. The 36 State FAs and the FCT hold 37 of the 54 votes, approximately 68.5 per cent of the entire voting strength.

“That figure deserves attention because it shows where electoral power remains concentrated.”

Okoku believes that Ghana’s 124-member congress reflects a different distribution of power, saying that the current structure is significantly broader.

“The GFA Statutes 2025, amended at Congress on August 12, 2025, provide for 124 Congress delegates, with each delegate possessing one vote.

“The allocation includes: 18 Premier League clubs (36 delegates, two per club), Women’s Premier League clubs (8 delegates), Division One League clubs (48 delegates), 10 Regional Football Associations (20 delegates, two each), Schools and Colleges (1 delegate), Beach Soccer Association (1), Futsal Association (1), Security Services Sports Association (1), Professional Footballers Association of Ghana (2), Coaches Association of Ghana (2), Referees Association of Ghana (2), Juvenile Clubs Association (2).

“Ghana also requires that at least five of the eight delegates representing the Women’s Premier League constituency be women. The significance is not simply that Ghana has more voters. It is where those voters come from.

“The clearest way to understand the contrast is to compare territorial football associations. In Nigeria: State FAs and FCT: 37 of 54 votes =approximately 68.5 per cent. In Ghana: regional football associations: 20 of 124 votes = approximately 16.1 per cent.

“That does not mean Nigeria’s 37 FA chairmen automatically vote as one bloc. They represent different associations, different states and different interests. It would be unfair to assume coordinated voting without evidence.

“The point is structural. A simple majority of 54 votes is 28. Therefore, a constituency holding 37 votes possesses enough potential voting strength to determine an election by itself if sufficiently united.

“That is arithmetic, not accusation. The legitimate governance question is therefore straightforward: Should any single category of Nigerian football membership possess more than two-thirds of the electoral power used to choose the leadership of the national federation?

“Ghana gives clubs direct political weight. The most striking feature of Ghana’s Congress is the direct representation given to clubs. Premier League clubs receive 36 delegates. Division One clubs receive 48. Women’s Premier League clubs receive eight. Together, those club-based constituencies hold 92 of Ghana’s 124 votes, approximately 74.2 percent of Congress.

“Nigeria follows a different philosophy. The NPFL receives one institutional vote, while the top five NPFL clubs from the most recently completed season receive one vote each. The NNL receives one vote, and its champion receives another. The Nationwide League receives one vote.

“Nigeria and Ghana have different football structures, histories and administrative systems, so the figures cannot simply be transferred from one country to another. But the contrast raises an important question.

“Clubs are the organisations that field teams, recruit and develop players, employ coaches and other football professionals, participate in competitions and sustain much of the weekly football economy.

“Should they have a stronger direct voice in deciding who governs that environment? Ghana has answered that question one way. Nigeria has answered it another. The comparison deserves discussion. Representation is not the same as influence,” Okoku stated.