Amos Adamu

Amos Adamu was Director General of the Nigerian National Sports Commission for ten years before being redeployed in November 2008. Before his appointment as Director General, Adamu was the Director of Sports of the ministry for 10 years.[2]

Amos Adamu
Executive Committee member of FIFA
In office
2006–2010
Personal details
Born (1952-12-31) 31 December 1952[1]
Amos Adamu being interviewed by BBC TV Oct 2010

Career

Adamu holds a doctorate degree in physical and health education.[3] He was a university lecturer before joining the National Institute of Sports (NIS). He was appointed the Sole Administrator of the Nigeria Football Association in 1992. After success in this position, he was then posted to the Federal Ministry of Sports as Director of Sports Development.[4] Adamu was involved in the administration and organization of the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship in Nigeria and the Nations Cup in 2000.[5]

In December 2000 Adamu was named President for the Organising Committee for the 8th All-Africa Games (COJA).[6] The games were held in Abuja, October 2003, in the newly constructed Abuja Stadium.[7] Adamu advised the government to sell this stadium immediately after the games in order to forestall the vandalisation typical of publicly owned buildings.[8] Subsequently, there was controversy about the conduct of the games organizers.[9]

In 2005, Adamu was picked as a member of the organizing committee for the first ever World Cup Finals in Africa to be hosted in South Africa 2010.[5] In 2006, Adamu led the transformation of the Sports Ministry to the National Sports Commission (NSC). Adamu became an Executive Committee member of FIFA and the Confederation of African Football.[4] In April 2007, Adamu became the President of the West Africa Football Union.[10]

In May 2008, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Sports and Social Development in Bayelsa State told members of the Senate Committee on Sports that problems with sports in Nigeria included corruption and dominance by a "cabal" led by Adamu.[11] In July 2008, Adamu announced that the Nigeria Sports Commission had initiated an inquiry into allegations of corruption in the local league.[12]

Redeployment and punished bribery

On 6 November 2008, President Umaru Yar'Adua ordered the removal of Adamu from the post of Director General of the National Sports Commission. Adamu, the Director General of the National Sports Commission was eventually redeployed to the Ministry of Special Duties after the removal of erstwhile Minister for Sports and Chairman National Sports Commission Abdulrahman Gimba, in a cabinet reshuffle. No reason was given.[4] As of January 2009, Adamu was a member of FIFA’s 24-man executive committee. He was scheduled to appear in a Nigerian court to press a claim for £2.3 million damages he had laid 15 months earlier against a newspaper that published allegations of corruption.[13] In August 2009, Adamu stated that problems in Nigerian sports since his redeployment had vindicated him.[14] On 17 October 2010, it was reported in the UK Sunday Times that he allegedly agreed to receive £500,000 in order to influence the voting procedure with his vote for the 2018 FIFA World Cup bid. He denied any wrongdoing.[15] An investigation by FIFA banned him and Reynald Temarii from soccer administration.[16] In November 2010 Adamu received a three-year ban and 10,000 Swiss franc fine from FIFA Ethics Committee after being found guilty of breaching bribery rules.[17] In February 2017 the FIFA Ethics Committee banned Adamu for two years.[18]

References
  1. Internet Archive: FIFA.com
  2. "Govt moves Amos Adamu to Special Duties Ministry". Nigerian Compass. 7 November 2008. Retrieved 2009-09-18.
  3. "Controversial Exit of Amos Adamu". Daily Independent (Lagos). 12 November 2008. Retrieved 2009-09-18.
  4. "Amos Adamu Booted Out of Sports". Daily Trust. 7 November 2008. Retrieved 2009-09-18.
  5. "Adamu Gets 2010 World Cup Job". World Cup 2010 South Africa. 10 January 2005. Archived from the original on 16 June 2010. Retrieved 18 September 2009.
  6. "Adamu Named President for 2003 All-Africa Games Organising Committee". Xinhua News Agency. December 15, 2000. Retrieved 2009-09-18.
  7. "Nigerian Army declares support for Abuja 2003". Nigerian Tribune. 21 March 2001. Retrieved 2009-09-18.
  8. "COJA Boss Wants Abuja Stadium Sold". This Day (Nigeria). March 4, 2003. Retrieved 2009-09-18.
  9. "Coja Scandal Won't Affect Adamu". This Day (Nigeria). January 20, 2004. Retrieved 2009-09-18.
  10. "CAF patches up WAFU factions". Ghana Football Association. 6 Jun 2007. Retrieved 2009-09-18.
  11. "Extinguish them! … Singabele tells Senate to remove the cabal holding Nigerian sports hostage". The Daily Sun. May 30, 2008. Archived from the original on 2010-02-06. Retrieved 2009-09-18.
  12. "Re: Amos Adamu To Investigate Corruption". Nigerians In America. 2008-07-03. Archived from the original on 2009-05-04. Retrieved 2009-09-18.
  13. "FIFA Boss Kicked Out By Nigerian President". Transparency in Sport (Andrew Jennings). 18 January 2009. Retrieved 2009-09-18.
  14. "I'm vindicated – Amos Adamu". Daily Sun. August 28, 2009. Retrieved 2009-09-18.
  15. "Amos Adamu in £500,000 bribery scandal". Next. October 17, 2010. Archived from the original on 2010-10-19. Retrieved 2010-10-17.
  16. "Soccer pair banned for corruption". The New Zealand Herald. 19 November 2010. Retrieved 2010-11-19.
  17. The Guardian, November 18, 2010, Amos Adamu banned for three years by Fifa after corruption hearing
  18. "Nigerian administrator Amos Adamu banned for two years by Fifa". BBC. 2017-03-11. Retrieved 2017-03-27.
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