Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on New Media, Segun Dada, has accused former Anambra State governor Peter Obi of politicising Nigeria’s nationwide sports activities groups following an argument over an alleged try to stop him from greeting members of the Flamingos at an airport.
Dada, in a put up on his X deal with, described makes an attempt to show the incident right into a political controversy as distasteful, insisting that nationwide athletes signify all the nation quite than any political celebration or particular person.
His response adopted a put up by Obi, the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), through which he alleged that officers of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) prevented him from greeting members of Nigeria’s Under-17 ladies’s workforce shortly after their arrival at an airport.
Obi stated he arrived on the airport at about 7 a.m. to board a flight to Enugu when he observed the gamers getting ready to board a automobile.
He defined that he requested his Protocol Officer, Jackie Wayas, to seek out out whether or not he might greet and welcome the gamers however was subsequently knowledgeable that NFF officers had instructed that he shouldn’t method the workforce.
According to the previous governor, he was instructed that the officers risked dropping their jobs in the event that they allowed him to work together with the gamers.
Dada, nonetheless, faulted Obi for portraying the incident as political victimisation, arguing that nationwide groups ought to be shielded from partisan pursuits.
He stated protocol pointers governing nationwide groups have been designed to guard younger athletes from political exploitation, business distractions and pointless media consideration whereas performing official duties.
“Our national athletes, including the Under-17 girls’ team, represent the entire Federal Republic of Nigeria, not any specific political party or individual ambition,” Dada said.
The presidential aide warned that portraying normal safety and administrative procedures as political victimisation might undermine the nationwide unity that sports activities have been anticipated to advertise.
He additionally accused Obi of counting on unverified info to advance what he described as a sufferer narrative.
“Mr Peter Obi, I hope you will reflect on your manipulative way of life and stop weaponising unverified hearsay to build a victim narrative,” he stated.
Dada urged the previous governor to permit the gamers to focus on their sporting achievements with out being drawn into political disagreements.
“Let our athletes focus on winning for Nigeria, free from political theatre,” he added.
Obi had additionally recalled an analogous incident on 25 March 2025, when he attended a FIFA World Cup qualifying match in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.
He alleged that though the state governor welcomed him on the VIP stand, officers prevented him from greeting the gamers after the match, reportedly out of worry of dropping their jobs.
The former governor described the 2 incidents as proof of what he known as an more and more poisonous political setting in Nigeria.
“The new Nigeria we aspire to build must have no room for hostility, intimidation, or discrimination, regardless of political affiliation,” Obi said.
The controversy comes because the Flamingos return to Nigeria following their historic triumph on the 2026 FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup in Morocco.
Nigeria defeated Japan 2-1 in Saturday’s remaining in Rabat to grow to be the primary African nation to win the competitors.
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