The Proprietor and Chairman of Ifeanyi Ubah FC, Dr. Ifeanyi Ubah, has emerged the new Chairman of Anambra State Football Association (ASFA).

On Tuesday in the state capital Awka, Ubah secured 24 votes to one against his opponent, Olisa Aniuno, at a 26-man delegates congress.

Also elected was the former Vice Chairman of the board, Jude Obikwelu, who retained his position with 24 votes to zero against Akonam Obiefuna, even though both him and Aniuono were absent during the election.

Speaking after being declared winner, Ubah said he was accepting the position to serve with genuine commitment, honesty, transparency and integrity.

He promised to turn around the state of football not just in the state but in Nigeria at large, saying that he would turn it into a big industry and a tourist attraction.

“I intend to use this opportunity as Chairman of Anambra FA to provide employment for our teeming unemployed youths in our proposed academy,” Ubah said.

Representative of the President of the Nigeria Football Federation, the Chairman of all Chairmen, Ibrahim Gusau, congratulated Anambra FA for the successful conduct of the election and urged the members to embrace unity.

In his reaction, Ubah’s opponent Olisa Aniuno described the election as a sham, saying that it was not conducted in line with the election timetable presented by the election committee.

He said: “It will not stand. I am going to explore every logical legal means to ensure that the right thing is done. It beats my imagination that this travesty could take place. How can people gather themselves and announce result without informing other stakeholders?

“What has happened is a continuation of the absurdity that is happening to Nigerian football and as a law abiding citizen, I will explore every legal means to achieve sanity in the process.

“As a candidate, the committee never informed me of any election whatsoever today. This is crazy.”

Aniuno expressed disappointment that the electoral committee headed by a respected administrator would allow itself to be used to perpetrate illegality.

Daily Sports reports that the Chairman of the Anambra FA Normalisation Committee, Ephraim Chukwuemeka, had earlier on April 28 during a stakeholders’ meeting in Awka announced that election into the ASFA executive would hold on May 4 while that of the local football committees would follow on May 30.

It is not clear why the electoral committee headed by Chukwuemeka himself moved the ballot forward by a day and without carrying everybody along.

•Credit: www.DailySportsng.com. Photo shows Anambra FA Chairman, Ifeanyi Ubah.

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