Do I belong to another planet?  Am I the only one that read the report this past week from Kano? An unusual statement was carried in at least two Nigerian newspapers. For several years I have read reports from victims of the corrupt practices in the Nigerian league. The reports were usually after a team playing away from home lost a match. The team’s officials would cry foul over biased or partial officiating by the referees. Nigerians became so used to such refrain that they hardly left a dent on the conscience of the people.
Every one knows there is a heavy dose of corruption in Nigerian football. N one has been able to do anything about it, including a hapless NFA that challenged all those with evidence to come forward and present them so that the perpetrators could be dealt with. Who dared do that? What kind of evidence would they present?
So, nothing has happened and the sore festered.
Last week Kadiri Ikhana shattered the ‘peace’ of the Nigerian league by making a confession. His statement is of great significance because it is coming not from a victim of the practice but a beneficiary. He openly admitted the practice thrives and that his team, like every other team in the league, is an active participant. So heavy is his ‘guilt’ that he has decided to give up the domestic game rather than continue to bask and languish in the mire of the ugly practice. For emphasis, as you read this, his team, Kano Pillars, are about to play their last match and become champions of the 2007/2008 Premier league!
It was the most scathing and most damaging report on the Nigerian league so far.

In a country rife with corruption, no Nigerian has ever been caught perpetrating the act. So how can the tide be halted if there is no evidence?
Kadiri Ikhana is no ordinary Nigerian. He is a distinguished Member of the Order of the Niger. He played for Nigeria for many years. He may be, at this point, the most successful indigenous coach in the history of Nigerian football with his unassailable records of having coached several clubs, won both domestic trophies and an African Club championship.
For emphasis, let me quote verbatim from that news report.
Hear Kadiri. ‘I don’t really care if Pillars win the league. I will quit. Even Kano Pillars rob teams at home and I do not want to be a part of it anymore’.
‘Maybe if I get an offer abroad where there is more sanity in their league I will reconsider my stand. In my days as a player if a club gets a win at home or away, you actually see the effort put in by the players, bit it is not the same now. Football is played more outside the pitch than inside it. It is too bad’.
‘We all, including my club, cheat with referees. We will beat JUTH to win the league next week because of this same thing I am talking about. How much longer do we continue with this madness?’
‘I do not want to be involved in Nigerian football anymore’.
Kadiri is not saying anything new. Everyone involved in Nigerian football knows that what he has said is true of the state of the game. What is simply incredulous is that he is brave enough to say it publicly, act against it by quitting the game at the risk of questions being asked about the validity of his team’s first place finish if truly he knows they also cheated.
Kadiri wins my heart for his patriotism, courage and honesty. Although, I do not support his decision to quit the domestic league, I wonder where this would ultimately take him – to heaven or to hell!