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Justice Okon Abang
of the Federal High Court Ikoyi, Lagos, yesterday discharged and
acquitted Amos Adamu, FIFA and CAF executive committee member alongside
ousted President of the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF), Aminu
Maigari and twenty seven officials of the NFF alleged to have defied an
order of the court restraining them from conducting elections into the
board of the federation.

The judge discharged the accused on the grounds that they were not properly served the orders of the court.

Mr. Abang explained
that though the court recognized that the NFF officials and members of
the Electoral Commission disobeyed the court, the conditions before
committal proceedings can be filed were not met by counsel to the
National Association of Nigerian Footballers (NANF), Aideloje Bello.

Meanwhile, the court
has fixed October 25, 2010 for hearing of the notice of preliminary
objection in the main suit which was pending before it.

NANF’s grudge

The association had
filed the suit against the football governing body and others, alleging
that the process of the election was perfected without recourse to its
members contrary to the clear wordings of FIFA statute and other extant
laws relating to football administration in Nigeria.

Joined as
co-defendants in the suit are NFF’s sacked president, Aminu Maigari;
President of the Nigerian Premier League (NPL) Board, Davidson Owumi;
the Minister of Sports, Ibrahim Isa Bio; Director General of Sports in
the Federal Sports Ministry; Patrick Ekeji and NFF’s electoral committee
chairman, Uthman Mustapha.

Mr. Abang had
earlier on held that it would be improper to allow the elections to take
place when there was a pending motion before them court. Specifically,
the court ordered parties to maintain status quo (ante bellum) pending
the determination of NANF’s motion.

The court had been
petitioned by NANF to restrain the newly elected body of the NFF from
assuming office because there had been a pending motion before a court
seeking to restrain the conduct of the elections that brought them into
office. All the parties were ordered to maintain the status quo until
the determination of the suit.