Era of bad officiating in NPFL is over, says Irabor

Irabor

• ‘It’s our duty to reposition Nigerian football’ • Thanks NFF President

The newly appointed Chairman of the Referees Committee of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Faith Irabor, has promised to do her best to ensure that more Nigerian referees distinguish themselves to earn the ticket to officiate at international level.

Over the years, the issue of poor officiating had been the talking point both in the Nigeria Professional Football League (NPFL) and the lower divisions. Such ‘corrupt’ practices had denied Nigerian referees chances of officiating in competitions organised by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and World football governing body, FIFA.

To change the situation for good, NFF President, Ibrahim Gusau, decided to name Irabor, a retired referee as head of the Referee Committee. She is the first Nigerian woman to occupy the position.

Speaking with The Guardian, yesterday, Irabor, who retired in 2010 after many years of running around in the football pitch with male and female players, said that she would do everything possible to make her appointment a blessing for the nation’s football.

“I am excited about this unique opportunity that will enable me to bring my wealth of experience and knowledge to bear,” she said. “I am grateful to the NFF President, who is trying to bring in changes that will move our football forward. I have been in the field of refereeing for years. As a retired FIFA referee and a one-time CAF instructor, I have seen it all. One thing I will do is to try as much as possible to encourage those who will take their job serious. It won’t be business as usual, and I won’t tolerate anything that will damage the image of our football.

“As I said, those who are disciplined on the