Former NFF Chief Bolaji Ojo-Oba Reveals How he Escaped Being Jailed Over Fraud

Former NFF Chief Bolaji Ojo-Oba Reveals How he Escaped Being Jailed Over Fraud

Ibitoye Shittu
updated at April 12, 2023 at 8:10 PM

Bolaji Ojo-Oba who was former Secretary General of the Nigerian Football Federation has finally spoken on how he escaped being jailed after been accused of fraud while in office.

The football administrator was in office in 2010 when the Super Eagles of Nigeria campaigned at the World Cup in South Africa where they failed to shine.

And after crashing out of the tournament, Bolaji Ojo-Oba and other Nigerian Football chiefs then were arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over alleged fraud.

Bolaji Ojo-Oba, Super Eagles, NFF, World Cup, FIFA.
Super Eagles of Nigeria in action on the pitch.
Source: Original

The accusations against Bolaji Ojo-Oba and others like Sani Lulu and Uchengbulam was that they raked in some money into their personal account without proper documentation.

And according to the report on Punch, Bolaji Ojo-Oba explained that he escaped being sent to prison because of expertise of his then Personal Assistant Dr Chris Emeruwa.

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Bolaji Ojo-Oba's reaction about fraud allegations

“Public opinion was against us after the 2010 World Cup, when we (Super Eagles) didn’t perform well and we were told to go. We were taken here and there. When we saw the charges, we couldn’t believe it.
“They wanted to get rid of us at all cost, so they said we embezzled N900m. The offence carries a seven-year jail term but I thank Emeruwa, for ensuring that I didn’t go to jail. While he was my PA, he made Photostat copies of all documents that came in and went out of my office, I never knew he was keeping the records. That was what saved me; I could have been in jail.”

Super Eagles striker rejects mega million move to join English club Birmingham City

Earlier, Sports Brief had reported how Super Eagles striker Josh Maja rejected a mega move to English club Birmingham City as the former Sunderland star has decided to remain at Ligue 2 club Bordeaux.

Birmingham City were reported to have submitted a bid for Josh Maja on the last day of the summer transfer, but things fell apart as there was no agreement between the two clubs.

Born and raised in England, Josh Maja felt that it is not yet time for him to return to the country of his birth, thereby deciding to remain in France.

In a tweet posted by transfer guru, Fabrizio Romano, he claimed that Josh Maja is also expected to sign a new two year deal at Ligue 2 club Bordeaux.

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