Ofili Case: NSC Appoints Mosindi Acting NBBF Secretary General Despite Panel’s Recommendation For Sanction
The National Sports Commission has appointed Rita Mosindi as Acting Secretary General of the Nigeria Basketball Federation, despite her having previously been recommended for sanction by a Ministerial Investigative Committee over the controversy surrounding sprinter Favour Ofili’s omission from the 100m event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
The Ministerial Investigative Committee, which examined the circumstances surrounding Ofili’s omission, found Mosindi negligent in her handling of communication concerning the athlete’s event status.
The committee said Mosindi was unable to provide convincing evidence that she had submitted important documents relating to Ofili’s registration in the 100m to the Ministry of Sports Development and the Nigeria Olympic Committee.
It also criticised her reliance on WhatsApp messaging as her only means of official communication and recommended that she be penalised by the appropriate authority.
The committee, however, did not conclusively attribute the athlete’s omission to the Athletics Federation of Nigeria alone, with its report pointing to conflicting evidence involving the AFN, NOC, World Athletics and the International Olympic Committee.
Mosindi was also previously questioned by an AFN audit committee set up in 2023 to examine the federation’s finances and administration. The committee raised concerns about her handling of some expenditures and recommended her removal from office.
The AFN board subsequently considered the audit report but noted that it did not have the power to remove Mosindi because it was not the body that appointed her. The board instead issued her a severe reprimand.
Despite the findings and recommendations contained in the two reports, Mosindi has now been moved into another senior administrative position within one of the country’s major sports federations.
The NSC announced the appointment as part of a wider reshuffling of General Secretaries across national sports federations.
Announcing the changes in Abuja, NSC Director General Bukola Olopade said the affected secretaries were not being sacked but redeployed because of the Commission’s confidence in their professional abilities.
‘Let me be clear that no secretary is being removed because he or she has been sacked. They are only being posted to another federation to carry out another assignment. This is how much the Chairman, Mallam Shehu Dikko, and I believe in all our secretaries and their professional expertise,’ Olopade said.
The development raises questions over whether the findings and recommendations of the previous investigations were considered in determining Mosindi’s new assignment and how accountability is being applied in the administration of Nigerian sports.
