Adokiye Amiesimaka is a patriot

Adokiye Amiesimaka is a patriot

I am still in a state of shock. And that is because Nigerians have in
the past one week proved to the world that cheating has been so
embedded in our lives that it is not just a part of us, but we want to
kill or lynch anyone who speaks against it.

Adokiye Amiesimaka is not an unknown name to Nigerians.

As a university student he played for the Green Eagles in the 70s and
80s. He also played for Rangers and then ended his career at Sharks.

He later rose to become the Team Manager of Sharks and then chairman
of the club.

He was chairman of Sharks until late in 2003 when the board was
dissolved by the Allwell Onyesoh led Rivers State Sports Ministry.

So it is safe to say Amiesimaka has been in Nigerian football for at
least three decades.

His contributions to Nigerian football are also well documented so it
may be tautology for me to attempt to reel them out here.

But Nigerians are not happy with the man known as the Chief Justice of
Nigerian football.

Amiesimaka made scathing allegations last week that the captain of
Nigeria’s U-17 team, Fortune Chukwudi may not be the age he claims to
be.

According to Amiesimaka, he was chairman of Sharks in 2002/03 and also
doubled as coach of the feeder team of the club.
He said the feeder team concept, the way he wanted it was still new
around these parts so he took an active part in coaching the team.

Fortune Chukwudi, according to him was in that team and claimed to be
18 years old so how on earth could he be 17 years old 7 years later.

Adokiye’s comments caused a furore   around the country with majority
of Nigerians saying he shouldn’t have spoken up and the comments of
some of them can even make you cry.

•       Why Adokiye go talk that kine thing? Abi na bad belle?
•       Adokiye was right but why now? Why didn’t he say it long ago? Why in
the middle of the tournament?
•       I think this is sabotage. Adokiye just wants cheap publicity.
•       I suspect Adokiye is angry with the boy. Maybe they had a deal when
the boy was at Sharks and he wants to get back on him.
•       Does he know if this is the way God wants to bless the boy? Why him
one spoil the boy choppings?
•       This is wickedness of the highest order. Would Adokiye talk if it
was his own son involved?
•       So because he know s the boy is powerless he wants to embarrass him.
What if the boy was the son of a militant leader, would Adokiye have
spoken?
•       After all other countries are cheating. Look at players from so so
and so country. Are they not over aged? Why he no talk about them?
•       Is Adokiye clean? What of all the atrocities he committed at Sharks?
•       But the major one came from the NFF- Adokiye may be jealous of the
boy since he never played in a World Cup
•       Adokiye wants our jobs in the glass house so he wants to do anything
to discredit us.

I have taken time to follow this argument through my email, from radio
programs and through the social networking site, Facebook and I
wonder, is anybody even addressing the issue he raised?

Shouldn’t the question be whether Amiesimaka lied or told the truth?

How come Adokiye did not say the whole team is over age? How come he
mentioned the only one name he knows- Fortune Chukwudi?

Then again, when is it too late to tell the truth?

So because he was not found out before the competition, his now
automatically becomes the right age?

Do you know that because of people like Fortune Chukwudi, a real U17
player is at home watching the World Cup? When will he get his turn to
play? When he is 28?

Then again, if Adokiye Amiesimaka is right and not mistaken, how real
or good is the MRI test?

My take on this is simply that we must strive to wipe out age cheating
from our football.

The fact that Chukwudi did not mysteriously get injured and dropped
from the team that played against New Zealand means the NFF are
unrepentant and insist he is 17.

I will just watch with a smirk on my face.

But I have a message for Nigerians- anybody mistakenly believing that
this team will metamorphose into the Green Eagles some day.

Most of these boys will be retired before the 2014 World Cup.

We want corrupt politicians arrested and we want the same for other
aspects of the economy but when it comes to corrupt footballers we
want our country people to keep quiet.

It is a crying shame that Nigerians actually think like this.

Personally, I believe Amiesimaka is a patriot and should not be
treated the way he has been.

And again it does not matter how clean his hands are. This time he
spoke the truth.

It is time we wipe out men from kids competitions.

And the MRI? I think it has been compromised. But who am I? The FIFA
doctors and scientists ratified it didn’t they?

I will watch the remaining matches of the World Cup and even be in
Calabar for the quarter final match between Nigeria and Korea.

But will I be celebrating if Nigeria win the World Cup? Certainly not!
I cannot celebrate with cheats.

One day I believe someone out there will prove to Nigerians that 17
year olds can play football.