The National Sports Commission (NSC) on Monday in Abuja said it would conduct a forensic investigation of the recent retirement of some Super Eagles players from national assignments.
Alhassan Yakmut, the Director-General of the National Sports Commission (NSC), said it was mind-boggling that some players were retiring from national assignments “while they are still active”.
He said the Super Eagles team needed unity, especially now that the team was beginning to show remarkable efforts in the move to return to its old glory.
“The most critical issue to be looked into now is the early retirement of budding talents in the Super Eagles from national competitions. This has called for NSC’s intervention.
“By purview of responsibility, we will not sit on the fence watching players who have not put in up to 10 years in the Super Eagles saying they won’t continue.
“So, we will conduct a forensic investigation administratively, to identify the cause of their retirement and find a solution to it.
“We will do this immediately in order to curtail this new culture of throwing in the towel when they are still active,’’ Yakmut said.
The NSC Director-General said the Code of Conduct earlier proposed for Super Eagles players would be put on hold until the issue of players’ early retirement is addressed.
“We want to address the issue of players leaving the team too soon before we conclude on the code of conduct for the players,’’ he added.
Yakmut commended the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) on the Super Eagles’ qualification for the 2016 Championship of African Nations (CHAN).
He assured that the NSC would support the team’s quest to win the championship billed for Rwanda.
Speaking on the effect of the Treasury Single Account (TSA) on the sports sector, Yakmut said there was no cause for alarm.
He said efforts were on to ensure that all the sports federations, including the NFF, complied with the Federal Government directive.
“Reasonable efforts have been made, and we have the co-operation of the Accountant-General of the Federation (AGF).
“A formal letter has been endorsed to the AGF after two meetings and the Commission’s Director of Finance is on top of it.
“Very soon, the NSC will have a programmed account with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the TSA issue would have been resolved amicably.
“I am aware that every sports federation has suffered the issue of the TSA, in terms of the day-to-day running of their activities.
“For instance, most competitions are time-bound and they are based on the international calendar, but we are finding a solution to this on behalf of all the federations,’’ the NSC director-general said.
