THE Football Club Owners Association of Nigeria says it has placed an indefinite suspension on the chairman of Kano Pillars Football Club Yahaya Surajo.
The Pillars boss is accused of unsportsmanlike behaviour during the rescheduled Nigeria Professional Football League matchday 31 fixture between his side and Dakkada FC of Uyo in Kano yesterday.
In a short video that went viral on social media yesterday, Surajo is seen sprinting towards the assistant referee and slapping the bewildered match official on the touchline.
The assistant referee had kept his flag down as Dakkada broke through Pillars’ offside trap to score a late equaliser and the score was supposedly 1-1 at that point.
However, after the physical assault by Surajo on the assistant referee, a long break ensued during which the match officials held ‘consultations’, and Dakkada’s goal was cancelled.
Footage of the goal shows there was no offside or any other infringement in the build-up that should have warranted it to be disallowed.
The final result was officially listed by the League Management Company as 1-0, although Dakkada insisted it was 1-1 since they scored a legitimate equaliser.
The Club Owners Association described as unfortunate, unacceptable and a bad representation of what the Association stands for.
“The club owners have therefore placed the chairman of Kano Pillars FC Malam Yahaya Surajo on indefinite suspension from all activities of the Association forthwith pending the outcome of a detailed investigation into the unfortunate incident,” Alloy Chukwuemeka, the Executive Secretary of the association said in a statement in Abuja today.
“Club Owners comprise of astute football administrators who have distinguished themselves in several fields of human endeavour with the expected high level of discipline in the management of their various clubs, hence the action of Surajo did not represent his status as a member of the association.”
The association said it frowned upon Surajo’s behaviour ‘which has brought the game to disrepute, coming less than 48 hours after a joint meeting of the LMC and Club Owners exco had warned against acts capable of causing negative image to the league’.
The chairman of the association Chief Isaac Danladi directed that the Surajo would face a disciplinary committee to defend his action or otherwise, before he could be readmitted.
The LMC, who has sanctioned Kano Pillars already this season, is expected to rule on the matter in the coming days.
