NSC, NIS chiefs defend decision to restrict Obi’s access to Flamingos

The National Sports Commission has accused two men claiming to be aides of Peter Obi of breaching security procedures while seeking access to Nigeria’s victorious Under-17 women’s team, the Flamingos, at the Abuja airport, as sports officials continued to defend the decision to deny the former Anambra State governor a meeting with the players.
The Director-General of the National Institute for Sports, Philip Shaibu, also said Obi could have stood at the airport and waved at the players like other Nigerians, arguing that the support given to the team before and during the competition mattered more than seeking to celebrate its victory afterwards.

The controversy followed Obi’s allegation that officials of the Nigeria Football Federation prevented him from greeting the Flamingos when they returned from Morocco after winning their first FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup title.
Speaking on News Central on Tuesday, the Director-General of the National Sports Commission, Bukola Olopade, said two men who identified themselves as protocol officers approached officials while the players were being escorted into buses after their flight.

He said the men asked that someone be allowed to meet the players, describing their approach as a breach of the security arrangements put in place to protect the team.
“With all due respect, Mr Obi, I’ve asked officials across from the NFF, including the NSC officials, did you see Mr Obi? They said no. They saw two men who said they were protocol,” Olopade said.
He added that the players and officials were exhausted after their overnight journey and were being assisted into buses when the men approached them.

“These young women and the officials were tired. People were ferrying them into the bus. Two strangers came, which is against security rules as to protect players, came from nowhere, went into their midst to go and ask that somebody wanted to come and see them,” he said.
Olopade said the men’s alleged connection to Obi did not exempt them from following established procedures.
“But even if those two gentlemen were there, it was a breach of security. It was a breach of protocol and you cannot just on your own do things,” he said.

He maintained that officials across the NSC and NFF had told him they did not see Obi or the two men around the international terminal.
The NSC chairman, Shehu Dikko, had earlier given a similar account, saying officials who received the team reported that they did not see Obi near the players or around the international terminal.
In a statement titled, ‘NSC Responds to Peter Obi: Flamingos’ World Cup Victory Must Not Be Politicised’, Dikko said two individuals wearing Obi’s campaign face caps and other campaign attire approached officials to request a meeting and photographs with the players.

According to him, the request was declined because it was sudden, there had been no prior arrangement and the players needed to rest after their journey and a demanding competition.
Dikko said the Flamingos arrived at about 5:30am aboard an Air Maroc flight, adding that Nigerians at the airport were allowed to celebrate with the team.

“The officials exercised their judgment in declining the sudden meeting and photograph request at that time, taking account of the players’ welfare and the circumstances of the request and without any prior notice of any arrangement for airport reception for the team,” he said.
He also rejected Obi’s allegation that officials threatened to lose their jobs for allowing him to approach the players.

“Nothing in the account provided by the officials supports the suggestion that their jobs were at risk,” Dikko said.
The NSC chairman accused Obi of turning an unscheduled request into a political grievance and urged him to apologise to the players.
“Turning a request for an unscheduled interaction into a toxic narrative of political victimisation shifts attention from the players’ achievement to an individual political grievance,” he said.
“These young champions should not be drawn into that controversy and never deserved this from Mr Obi.”

Dikko added: “I urged and advised that His Excellency Mr Peter Obi reflect deeply and offer an unreserved apology to these young girls for souring their moment of glory with his regrettable actions, subsequent statement and media interviews deliberately weaponising a non-issue for political gain.”
He further defended the restrictions, saying the players were minors and had a designated safeguarding officer responsible for their protection.

“Our young athletes must not be used to suggest allegiance to any political party. These considerations apply equally to public officials, political figures and other members of the public,” he said.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Morning Brief on Tuesday, Shaibu said he did not consider a post-victory airport reception necessary, insisting that the President and First Lady should not be seen as seeking public attention.

“You know, the President will not play to the gallery. And the First Lady will not play to the gallery. Going to the airport to want to see them is playing to the gallery, as far as I’m concerned,” he said.
The former Edo State deputy governor said President Bola Tinubu personally called the players before, during and after the tournament, describing the calls during difficult moments as more significant than a post-victory appearance.
“I consistently tell Nigerians, the President makes personal calls before, during, and after. And those calls are more important than after the victory,” he said.

“Because when the spirit is down and you get a call from the President telling you, look, forget about the last match, focus on the next match, I think that is more important than after winning coming to do a popularity show of showing affection.”
Shaibu, who said he was a former player and had served as deputy governor in charge of sports in Edo State, said the Flamingos deserved recognition but stressed the importance of the preparation and support behind their achievement.
“These girls deserve to be received, these girls deserve all the accolade that they need. But what is key is the foundation preparatory to that victory,” he added.

He contrasted Tinubu’s direct communication with his experience of trying to get governors to speak to players in dressing rooms.
“To get a governor to even speak to players in the dressing room was difficult. And here you are not even compelling or appealing or begging the President to make a call. He’s on his own. Says, ‘I want to talk to the girls. How are they doing? Fine. I want to talk to them’,” he said.
Shaibu added that hearing directly from the President could encourage players during competitions.
“You are in a dressing room and you are hearing from your President talking to you. That, for me, is more important. That’s what the President does,” he said.

Asked whether NFF officials were right to prevent Obi from welcoming the team, Shaibu replied: “Mr Obi can stand at the airport and wave to them like every other person did.”
He recalled an encounter with Enyimba players at an airport, saying he waved at them and allowed them to continue their journey after learning that they were travelling.
“When I was actively involved in sports, there are times that our system will say, look, don’t talk to anybody, just wave. And so when such instructions come, we have to follow,” he said.
Olopade also recalled an earlier encounter with Obi at a football event in Uyo, where he said he stopped the former governor from proceeding towards the players’ dressing room without accreditation.

He said access beyond the designated mid-zone was restricted to accredited individuals, regardless of their status.
“I was the one who put Mr Obi to the side and politely and respectfully explained to him that in the Egypt that he likes to mention, in the China that he likes to mention, he dare not go beyond the mid-zone from his VIP seat to say he wants to go into the dressing room of the players without accreditation. They would have arrested him and put him away,” he said.
Olopade said he had explained the restriction to Obi at the time.
“I told him politely, ‘Sir, you do not have accreditation to go beyond. This place is called the mid-zone. If you do not have accreditation, you cannot go there’,” he added.

He also disputed Obi’s account of the incident involving the Super Eagles after their 1-1 draw against Zimbabwe in Uyo on March 25, 2025.
Dikko had said no dignitary or official, including himself and the governors present, visited the players’ dressing room after the match because the team wanted to hold an immediate meeting following the result.

He said access to the dressing room was governed by FIFA accreditation and security regulations, which applied to everyone.
Obi, in a statement titled, ‘A New Dimension of Toxic Politics in Nigeria’, had said he arrived at the Abuja airport at about 7am on Monday to board a flight to Enugu when he sighted the returning Flamingos.
He said he asked his protocol officer, Jackie Wayas, to find out whether he could greet the players but was informed that NFF officials had refused his request.
Obi alleged that the officials warned that they could lose their jobs if they allowed him to approach the team. He described the incident as another example of what he called the growing culture of toxic politics in Nigeria.
He also recalled the 2025 incident in Uyo, alleging that he was prevented from greeting the Super Eagles after the World Cup qualifying match while other government officials were allowed to meet them.
The Presidency also faulted Obi’s account, with the Special Assistant to the President on Social Media, Dada Olusegun, accusing him of attempting to politicise national sports teams and institutions.

Olusegun said national athletes represented the entire country and not any political party or individual ambition, arguing that established protocols were intended to protect young athletes from political exploitation, commercial distractions and unnecessary media attention.
The controversy also drew a response from Reno Omokri, who argued that national teams traditionally meet the Head of State after major victories.
Omokri cited the reception of the Super Eagles by former President Goodluck Jonathan at the Presidential Villa on February 12, 2013, after their Africa Cup of Nations triumph.

He also recalled that the Golden Eaglets, after winning the inaugural FIFA U-16 World Championship in China in 1985, first met then military Head of State Muhammadu Buhari, despite the support they had received from late businessman and sports benefactor MKO Abiola.
Omokri said the convention should be respected, arguing that sports should be protected from what he described as the “toxic” politics of individuals.
He said seeking to insert oneself into a victory without contributing to the team's success was opportunistic and fell below the standard expected of a statesman.
Dikko, meanwhile, said the Flamingos’ victory was the product of more than seven months of preparation, including training, World Cup qualifiers, the WAFU tournament and the competition in Morocco.
He acknowledged Obi’s congratulatory messages during the closing stages of the competition but said national teams required consistent support beyond their moments of success.

“A message at the height of a team’s success is welcome, but it is not the same as sustained engagement with its preparation, welfare and development,” he said.
“Our national teams deserve consistent support from everyone through preparation, competition and setbacks, as well as when they return with trophies.”
He invited Obi and other Nigerians interested in meeting or hosting the players to submit formal requests to the NFF or NSC so arrangements could be made around the team’s programme and welfare.
Dikko also cited a Nigerian businessman who sponsored a delegation to Morocco to support the Flamingos during the final and later donated $50,000 to the team on the pitch, saying the gesture was made without seeking media attention or political recognition.

Olopade said the dispute was distracting attention from the team's historic achievement.
“There is a political controversy that has been caused by people who do not love this country. What happened on Saturday in Morocco was a good PR for this country, was a good story for this country and I insist that we should deliberate more on the positives that happened in Morocco and celebrate these superheroes,” he said.
He added: “We should celebrate our superstars.”
The Flamingos defeated Japan 2-1 in Saturday’s final in Morocco to win Nigeria’s first FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup title, becoming the first African country to lift the trophy.