Nigeria Content Online

The
incidence of hooliganism by fans of football clubs in the Nigeria
Premier League does not seem to be abating despite efforts by the
league’s governing body to bring it under control.

Last Sunday, fans
of Sunshine Stars resorted to intimidation and harassment of presiding
match officials in their match against Heartland at the Gateway Stadium
in Ijebu-Ode.

Journalists at the
match venue as well as players of Heartland were equally not spared by
the fans and it came as no surprise that the visitors ended up losing
the game 2-1.

The Nigeria Premier
League, upon receipt of the match report, subsequently ordered Sunshine
Stars to play their next two home games behind closed doors.

The league body
also issued a warning to the management of other clubs to check the
unruly behaviour of their fans during matches or risk incurring the
wrath of the NPL: “The league board reminds all Premier League clubs of
the provisions of articles 3.7, 4.3, 5.7 of the 2010/2011 Rules and
Regulations,” stated Tunji Babalola, the acting Executive Secretary of
the NPL, in a statement made available to NEXT this past week where he
further emphasised that henceforth, provisions of the articles shall be
fully enforced on all erring clubs.

“Those are the
rules and clubs have to ensure that their supporters are of better
behaviour henceforth otherwise they will have themselves to blame,”
said Babalola.

Responsibility

But can clubs be held responsible for the actions of fans, most of whom are not directly affiliated to the club?

“We have fans we
recognise as our supporters, who are registered with us,” says Mike
Idoko, Executive Director of Ondo State Football Agency. “But they were
not the ones who stirred trouble on that day.”

Idoko’s views are
in accord with those of Jubril Arowolo, Head of Media of Shooting
Stars, who is of the opinion that there are hooligans with no
affiliation to any club whose sole purpose of going to a match venue is
to foment trouble.

“We have our list
of registered supporters but there are certain people who have no link
with the club and only want to stir trouble,” he said. “We know some of
them and always try to keep them away from the stadium but there are
still so many others out there and it’s mostly because of the
unemployment problem in the country.” Last season, supporters of Minna
based Niger Tornadoes allegedly assaulted match referee Gabriel Adigwe
and his assistants at the end of their scoreless draw against Bayelsa
United at the Bako Kontagora Stadium.

The attack left the
match officials with various degrees of injuries and saw the club
incurring a heavy fine, as well as other sanctions from the NPL but the
club to date still insists that those responsible for the incident were
not card carrying supporters of the club.

“They were not our
registered fans. I think they were just aggrieved football fans who had
probably bet a lot of money on the game and were disappointed that the
match officials didn’t bend the rules in their favour,” John Adams,
Niger Tornadoes’ Media Officer told NEXT.

“We had enough
policemen at the venue but they were not equipped to handle such a
situation and that I believe led to the assault on the referees,” he
added.

Fishing out the thugs

One common factor
in cases of violence at Nigerian stadiums is the inability of the clubs
to fish out the perpetrators. Whether this is a deliberate act on the
part of the clubs, and there have been instances in the past where
clubs have been accused of deliberately fuelling violence, remains
uncertain.

But with
hooliganism taking on new forms especially in an age where weapons such
as knives, machetes, iron rods and clubs, as well as firearms are
readily available, and can be sneaked into match venues, it appears
Nigerian stadiums will not get to become as family friendly as the
league body would desire.

But with the NPL’s
insistence on having only television friendly venues for league
matches, it just may be time for the league body to equally take the
criteria beyond having just a smooth, lush playing surface.

“Increasing
significantly the number of policemen at match venues and equipping
these policemen with metal detectors will go a long way in curbing the
problem,” suggested Kindness Nwaogu, a Lagos based football coach.

But what happens if
these hooligans manage to sneak these weapons past stadium security?
The best option, according to Ilorin based technology expert, Udochi
Paul is to tow the same path as the English by installing Close Circuit
Televisions (CCTV) at stadiums.

“Having CCTV around
and within the stadium will go a long way in curbing the problem of
hooliganism especially as the perpetrators can easily be spotted and
fished out,” he said. “It is an inexpensive system that will help to
save lives and encourage people like us who love football to return to
the stadiums.” However, one snag in the way of this suggestion is the
fact that stadia in Nigeria are not owned by clubs but if the league
body hopes to lure fans back to match venues, and in the process help
the clubs to earn more money at the gates, they will need to do all
they can to end the menace called hooliganism.

Government’s role

Even the government
has a role to play as is the case in most European countries such as
Turkey where the legislature passed a bill that will see persons who
enter the playing area, changing rooms, corridors, and exit tunnels
without authorisation facing a prison sentence ranging from three
months to a year, or a fine.

In addition, if a
person disrupts the continuation or security of a sporting event, he
may be sentenced to three years in prison.

In Morocco (where
the Casablanca derby, one of the fiercest football rivalries in Africa
takes place between Wydad and Raja) a law introducing prison sentences
and fines for football violence will soon be adopted by the country’s
parliament.

According to the
Moroccan Justice Minister, Mohamed Naciri in a meeting with members of
parliament last Thursday: “This law introduces prison sentences of up
to five years and fines of up to 1,000 Euros.

“This law fills
certain holes in the judicial arsenal of measures against football
hooliganism, which starts in the stadiums and often spills out into the
streets after the matches,” he said.

According to
Naciri, the law will also outline action that can be taken against
those at football clubs and sporting venues who do not take appropriate
action to stop violence inside and outside stadiums.

Hopefully, the National Assembly will deem it fit to tow the same line as their Moroccan counterparts.