Nigeria Judo Federation (NJF) President Dr. Musa Oshodi has revealed that the reported rift with the International Judo Federation (IJF) is a ruse.
According to the medical practitioner, he described the recent correspondence from the global body as an internal administrative matter and insisted there is no threat to Nigerian judo’s international standing.
Oshodi said the IJF letter, which surfaced in the media, was prompted by petitions from aggrieved stakeholders within the domestic judo community after local leadership grievances that had previously been resolved by the Federal Ministry of Sports Development and the National Sports Commission (NSC) were escalated to the international body.
“The international body wants to look neutral and transparent,” Oshodi said. “So that it won’t look as if, because the president is with them, they are siding with the president.
“And that was why they sent that letter, noting that there are some allegations regarding the authenticity of the constitution and the transparency of the election.”
On widespread reports that the IJF had mandated fresh elections within 90 days, Oshodi said the directive had been misread. He described the 90-day poll as a conditional clause, not an active order.
“They said we are given 14 days to clarify the allegations. It is a clause that failure to do that, another election will be organised in the next 90 days. It’s not that they are saying now that an election must be organised.
“That’s why I said people should be very careful with the interpretation,” he said.
Oshodi confirmed that the Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC) and the NSC have been informed and are collaborating on a formal response to the IJF.
“The necessary sectors have been contacted. The NOC is aware, the NSC is aware, and we are going to respond accordingly. It is after that I can tell anyone a categorical position. But for now, there is no cause for alarm,” he said.
Packaged by Lanre Olabisi
