The 1969 visit of Pele to Nigeria changed football in Nigeria

 

 

 

 

 

In 1969, with a civil war raging, global football's biggest star arrived in Benin City as part of a visit that would change Nigerian football forever.

Those involved still remember the occasion vividly.

"It was all about Pele. Before one o'clock, Ogbe Stadium was jam-packed and it was difficult for people to have seats, because they were anxious to see the artistry of Pele," Godwin Izilein told BBC Sport Africa.

Izilein had been chosen as captain of a team put together to represent Mid-Western State, an old administrative region that covered what are now Edo and Delta states, in a friendly against Pele's Brazilian club Santos.

"It was at the peak of the civil war. The day of the match, nobody thought of guns any more," Izilein added.
Santasticos on tour

With a roster including Pele and the likes of fellow Brazil legends Carlos Alberto and Pepe, Santos' so-called 'Santasticos' spent much of the 1960s cashing in on their global fame, heading out on exhibition tours across multiple continents.

They made more than one trip to Africa, including the 1969 visit that included stop-offs in Algeria, Congo-Brazzaville, DR Congo, Ghana and Mozambique, in addition to Nigeria.

Aged 28, Pele was already a two-time World Cup winner, having burst on to the scene as a precocious 17-year-old in 1958, scoring six goals as Brazil won their first title in Sweden. The Selecao made it back-to-back World Cups in Chile in 1962, although Pele missed much of that tournament through injury.

Although Santos' arrival in Nigeria came a year ahead of Brazil's much-celebrated third world title, claimed in Mexico in 1970, Pele was still seen as an African sporting icon, given his ancestry on the continent.

"It was quite striking to see Pele in person because we all read about him as a young player who helped Brazil win the World Cup in Sweden," said Jonathan Ofugere, who at the time was president of the West African Football Union (WAFU).

"We were proud that a player of African origin, born in Brazil, could put up such a show."

Mid-Western State governor Samuel Ogbemudia had helped organise the match, having extended an invitation to Santos following their 2-2 draw in Lagos against Nigeria's national team, known back then as the Green Eagles.

"The Nigeria Football Association wanted a guarantee that the Mid-Western government would provide some money to facilitate their movement from Lagos to Benin," Ofugere continued.

"Ogbemudia called an emergency meeting to raise funds. Before long, we were ready to meet all the conditions."
'My first tackle on him was a robust one'

The game took place on 4 February - and started badly for the home side.

"Within five minutes, we conceded two goals," recalls Izilein, who played in midfield.

"I talked to my players and said, 'Look, we have to do something. We cannot be slaughtered here on our ground'."

Izilein's plan involved him taking on the game's most difficult task.

"I had no option but to volunteer to mark Pele.

"He was very skilful and smart, a perfect gentleman. My first tackle on him was a robust one and he didn't like it.''

Izilein's robust tactics seemed to pay dividends. At the start of the second half, a goal for Mid-Western State was greeted by ecstatic celebrations in the stands - and an unusual red card.

"It was wonderful! It was like a million goals. Everybody in the stadium went berserk.

"Esama Igbinedion [a Nigerian business tycoon] entered the pitch and started spraying money on us. He was given a red card (but) didn't leave until after spraying us."

The game ended 2-1 to Santos, but it wasn't the end of Izilein's encounter with Pele.

"(He) was very enthusiastic to hear from me. He said, 'Would you like to follow me to Brazil?' And I said no.

"Nobody was enthusiastic about travelling at that time. If it were now, I would have followed them right from the pitch.''
Nigeria turns to Brazil for inspiration

There are oft-repeated apocryphal tales that claim Pele's arrival in Benin City, close to the frontline of the fighting between Nigerian government forces and Biafran independence fighters, led to an informal ceasefire, with soldiers putting down their weapons in order to focus on the football, although the wider consensus in Nigeria is that this is not true.

If there was a cessation in the war, it certainly didn't last - but the impact of Santos' visit definitely did.

"(Pele's visit) led to a lot of things," said Ogufere.

"The Nigeria Football Association, where I served for more than 10 years, now looked towards Brazil and imitated them and encouraged the players to play like Brazilians.

"That led to Nigerians going to Brazil and Nigeria also hiring a Brazilian coach - Otto Gloria - who helped us win the Africa Cup of Nations for the first time in 1980."

There are also personal stories about the impact the man they called 'The King' had in Nigeria.

"Pele raised the standard of football in Nigeria. He made it very high. The impact was tremendous," says Jossy Donbraye, another of the Mid-Western State team that lined up against the great man in 1969.

"I was just 19 years old. I played as a schemer, distributing passes in midfield," Donbraye added.

"That's why Pele told me that I will play for the country. For me to play 10 years for Nigeria was by Pele telling me."

For Izilein, who would go on to coach Nigeria's women's team, the Super Falcons, the impact on training was key.

''He emphasised discipline. We started training and coaches were being sent out for refresher courses.

"There was no more kick and follow. People now developed the idea of initiating attack from the rear.

"Those who were not interested before... their interest was rekindled."

Pele's death in December at the age of 82 robbed football of an all-time great but Ogufere is convinced the Brazilian's legacy endures in Nigeria.

"We are all very saddened to lose him but he has left an indelible mark which players should look to emulate."

By Joshua Adetunji, BBC

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25 people killed by Islamist militants in Nigeria

Islamist militants have killed at least 25 people in an attack in a fishing town in Nigeria's Borno state, police and residents said on Thursday.

Police commissioner Abdu Umar linked the attack in Dikwa to Boko Haram insurgents. He said a policeman was killed in a separate incident.

Dikwa is close to the Sambisa forest, a Boko Haram stronghold, which has been fought over by Islamic State West Africa Province, who are also active in the area.

Bulama Modu, a resident who assisted the military in recovery work, said a total of 33 fishermen had been killed. He said 25 bodies were found at the scene of Wednesday's attack while eight others were recovered on Thursday.

Another resident who escaped said the insurgents suspected that fishermen were providing information to the military after the army attacked them some weeks ago. The insurgents extort levies from the fishermen.

The military did not respond to a request for comment.

The Boko Haram insurgency, which erupted in northeast Nigeria in 2009, has killed more than 350,000 people and forced millions to flee their homes.

By Chijioke Ohuocha, Reuters

Presidential election in Nigeria was positive for the region

On March 1, Nigeria’s Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Bola Tinubu of the governing All Progressives Congress (APC) the winner of the 2023 presidential election.

It said the 70-year-old former Lagos governor won the race with 37 percent of the vote, while his main rival, People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate Atiku Abubakar, came second with 29 percent. The Labour Party’s Peter Obi, who had become a surprise favourite in the run-up to the election, came third with 25 percent.

Soon after the results were announced, congratulatory messages started to pour in from across Africa and the world. The chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, and the chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Guinea-Bissau President Umaro Sissoco Embalo, congratulated President-elect Tinubu on his win. So did the leaders of Ghana, Sierra Leone, Liberia and the Gambia.

The US Department of State, meanwhile, congratulated not only Tinubu but all Nigerians for what it viewed as a “competitive election” that “represents a new period for Nigerian politics and democracy”. UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly also issued a statement, commending Nigerian voters “for their participation in the Presidential and National Assembly elections and for their patience and resilience in exercising their democratic rights”.

Despite these waves of praise and celebration, however, the election was hardly without problems.

It recorded the lowest turnout since Nigeria’s return to democracy in 1999, with only 27 percent of eligible voters casting ballots. There were widespread allegations of voter suppression and vote buying as well as a few isolated incidents of violence. Most crucially, both Abubakar and Obi disputed the outcome and vowed to challenge it in Nigeria’s highest appeals court.

Nevertheless, despite being far from perfect, Nigeria’s largely peaceful and somewhat efficiently conducted election – which received a stamp of approval from the African Union Election Observation Mission – was a much-welcomed sight in a region long suffering from military coups and strongmen clinging to power.

The head of the ECOWAS Observer Mission to Nigeria, former Sierra Leone President Ernest Koroma, had acknowledged the regional importance of this election days before the polls opened. “Nigeria’s election remains a guide to West Africa,” Koroma said on February 23. “Its failure would spell doom for the sub-region”.

Koromo felt the need to underline the importance of this election because in the days leading up to it, there were growing concerns about the possibility of electoral violence and other likely obstacles to a peaceful transfer of power – and for good reason.

In the last few years, Nigeria has been grappling with severe socio-political and economic challenges, including underfunded public services, police brutality, a stagnant economy, and countrywide insecurity caused by Boko Haram, armed bandits and separatists. Coupled with a long history of military rule, all this raised fears that Nigeria may experience some democratic backsliding in this election cycle.

But despite growing tensions, Nigeria successfully conducted its election and determined its next president without much disturbance. The military stepped in to ensure the security of the polls, but made no move to intervene in the democratic process. Sure, Obi and Abubakar dispute the result, but they appear determined to do so not through violence and populist provocation, but by legal means.


All this stands in striking contrast to the rest of Nigeria’s immediate neighbourhood, where many countries are suffering under military juntas or struggling to hold free and fair elections.

In Sudan, for example, an October 2021 military coup ended the nation’s brief flirtation with democracy, just two years after longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir’s removal from power through a popular revolt. Since the 2021 putsch, the military has frequently cracked down on pro-democracy demonstrations and it stands accused of abducting, raping, torturing and killing protesters.

Similarly in Chad, civil rights groups have been facing violence and threats since the military took control of the country following President Idriss Deby’s death in April 2021. Led by Deby’s son Mahamat Idriss Deby, the coup leaders suspended the constitution, dissolved the parliament and dismissed the government. On October 2022, the military government postponed the country’s planned return to democratic rule for another two years and said it will continue to remain in control until then.

Burkina Faso is also experiencing extreme political instability. Last year, it underwent two military coups in the space of nine months – one that removed President Roch Kabore in January 2022, and another that deposed military leader President Paul-Henri Damiba in September. The military government now in power says the country will not return to civilian rule until at least 2024.

Mali has also experienced two military coups – one in August 2020 and another in May 2021 – and is supposed to restore civilian rule in 2024.

Meanwhile, Guinea’s first democratically-elected leader Alpha Conde was toppled by soldiers in September 2021, following widespread protests against the veteran politician’s controversial move to “reset” his term limit in a constitutional referendum and seek two more terms.

There were also failed coup attempts in Guinea-Bissau and the Gambia in 2022.

So it wouldn’t be wrong to say Nigeria’s neighbourhood is suffocating under a dark cloud of lawlessness, democratic regression and military interventions.

ECOWAS has attempted to defend democracy in the region, albeit without much success, through ostracising military governments and establishing progressive policies and measures. It has suspended Mali, Burkina Faso and Guinea from the union indefinitely and imposed travel sanctions on senior leaders and government officials from these countries, presumably until civilian leadership and democracy are restored.

Furthermore, it has twice attempted to introduce two-term presidential limits – which are already in place in Nigeria – for its member states, first in 2015 and then in 2021, to counter the growing trend of “third-termism” and advance regional stability. Regrettably, it has failed to secure a unanimous agreement.

In this context, the election in Nigeria was a breath of fresh air. Granted, the polls were not free of sporadic violence, long delays and technical problems. But as the head of the African Union Election Observation Mission, former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, said in a February 28 statement, the “electoral environment was generally peaceful despite isolated incidents of violence” and “voting and counting took place in an open and transparent atmosphere in the presence of observers, party agents and media”.

Indeed, the political atmosphere before and after the elections has served to confirm the determination shared by most Nigerians to preserve civilian rule and strengthen democracy.

On March 6, for example, Abubakar led hundreds of PDP supporters in a peaceful march to INEC’s offices in Abuja, where he delivered a petition and reiterated his party’s decision to challenge the results of the presidential election. Abubakar’s apparent determination to observe the rule of law as he disputes the election result is confirmation of the confidence Nigeria’s leading opposition parties have in the country’s democratic processes and institutions.

So sure, there was much that was wrong with Nigeria’s election. But despite all the controversies and disputes, Nigeria successfully conducted a democratic election and presented the region with an (albeit imperfect) example to look up to. And for this, it should be applauded.

By Tafi Mhaka, Al Jazeera

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Video - Opposition candidate Peter Obi says he will prove he won presidential election in Nigeria

Video - Clip from President-elect Bola Tinubu's acceptance speech

Sharp fall in oil spills in Nigeria after Shell shutdown

Shell on Thursday reported a sharp fall in oil spilled as a result of sabotage in Nigeria's oil-rich Delta in 2022 reflecting closure of operations for six months in the wake of attacks.

The volume of crude oil spilled caused by sabotage in the Delta fell to 600 tonnes from 3,300 tonnes the previous year, Shell said in its annual report.

The number of such spills fell to 75 from 106.

"The decreased number of incidents in 2022 correlates with a shutdown of production for about six months because of an unprecedented increase of crude oil theft from the Trans Niger Pipeline (TNP)," Shell said.

Shell is the operator of Nigeria's main onshore oil and gas joint venture SPDC which has struggled for years with operational incidents, theft and sabotage. 

By Shadia Nasralla, Reuters

Related story: $15m settlement to be paid by Shell for oil spills in Nigeria

 

State elections postponed in Nigeria due to dispute of presidential vote

Nigeria has postponed Saturday’s crucial state elections as Africa’s most populous country wrangles over a presidential vote that opposition parties claim was rigged.

The electoral commission emerged from an hours-long meeting on Wednesday night to announce it was pushing back polls to elect powerful state governors by a week.


The commission attributed the delay to problems with reconfiguring a digital voting system that had been the source of rancour and international criticism after it failed to perform as promised in the presidential elections held on 25 February.


Earlier on Wednesday the court of appeal rejected a request by the opposition People’s Democratic party (PDP) and the Labour party to inspect the digital tablets used to screen voters and transmit results from polling stations.

The electoral commission said that while the ruling made it possible for it to prepare the tablets for state elections, the ruling had come “far too late”.

“We thank Nigerians and friends of Nigeria for their understanding as we continue to deal with these difficult issues,” it said in a statement.

Labour and the PDP have alleged that the failure to transmit results from many polling stations to a much-heralded public website until days after the presidential polling day allowed the ruling All Progressives Congress party to collude with electoral commission officials to manipulate results.

They are preparing for a rerun in court of the three-way battle electrified by Peter Obi’s outsider campaign. The APC candidate, Bola Tinubu, won with fewer than 9m votes after the country’s lowest ever electoral turnout.

On Monday the PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, led hundreds of supporters in a march to the electoral commission’s headquarters in Abuja. Before the electoral commission decision on Wednesday, Obi cancelled planned governorship campaigning, saying he remained committed to the “mission of retrieving our mandate”.

The electoral commission has said it plans to use the same public website that has been criticised by international observers for its previous failure. They concluded the presidential election fell short of Nigerians’ expectations, as results were meant to be uploaded to the website directly from polling stations on polling day. However, observers have not alleged fraud as they had after some previous Nigerian elections.


The Labour party separately told the Guardian its voters faced being intimidated at polling stations in the state elections. The party’s candidate for Lagos governor said party volunteers would “stand up and defend” supporters and resist any attempts to suppress votes for him.

The PDP and Labour have seized on what became a chaotic count after the failures with the digital voting system, as well as evidence of intimidation and voter suppression by ruling party agents at polling stations. One independent observer, the non-profit Yiaga Africa, reported cases of intimidation at as many as one in 20 polling stations. It is unclear how much these may have affected results.

The APC denies manipulating results and has suggested its supporters were themselves intimidated in Obi strongholds.

Nigeria will elect governors in 28 of its 36 states, as well as state assembly members, with fierce contests expected in cities in which Obi did well in the presidential vote, such as Lagos and the capital, Abuja. In both of these he used a campaign built on social media to upset the odds by winning votes with a promise to tackle corruption.

Particular focus will fall on Lagos, home to 20 million people, thriving tech and arts sectors and an economy that would be ninth-largest in Africa were it a country. It is also the home town of Tinubu, who is considered the “godfather” of the city he used to govern and is said to be desperate to ensure his party maintains power of it.

Were he to lose, assuming he is sworn in as president, he would be the first sitting Nigerian president not to control his home state.

Labour’s Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, a 39-year-old architect, is taking on the incumbent APC governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who has launched a charm offensive in Lagos in recent weeks including the release of vehicles impounded for minor traffic offences.

Rhodes-Vivour said the party would send out a lot more people than on presidential polling day to monitor the process and provide security.

Joseph Essien, 47, an Obi-supporting driver in Lagos, criticised the police over the presidential election. “They didn’t come to [voters’] rescue when needed,” he said. “Policemen were there and they did nothing so you expect people to go again and not defend themselves?”

Joana Andrew, 46, an APC supporter who has been selling snacks outside Tinubu’s high-walled Lagos compound, said Sanwo-Olu had a “brighter chance” of winning the state than Tinubu had during the presidential voting. “The people who come out to vote for Obi, they love coming out for the presidency – when it comes for governorship they withdraw,” she said.

By Richard Assheton, The Guardian

Related story: Video - Opposition candidate Peter Obi says he will prove he won presidential election in Nigeria