Ugochukwu Iwuchukwu
The Nigeria Football Federation NFF has announced the suspension of all forms of football activities in the country for the next four weeks, as a result of the global coronavirus pandemic.
NFF in a statement said the shutdown affects all on-field activities with the various National Teams, the Nigeria Professional Football League, the other Leagues, youth football programmes, and even street football.
NFF President Amaju Pinnick said the suspension will be reviewed after four weeks in line with events and trends worldwide.
He also advised all members of the football family to observe the various safety precautions and conduct as advised by the Federal Ministry of Health and the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, such as hand-washing, the use of sanitizers and social distancing.
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Pinnick also said the only football activity that will be permitted to work is the NFF investigation committee into the death of Chineme Martins, which was inaugurated on Tuesday in Benin City.
The committee is expected to submit its report within the next 10 days.
Also, the League Management Company LMC has suspended the Nigeria Professional Football League NPFL until further notice.
The LMC said the suspension is in line with the global health preventive protocol against the Coronavirus in Nigeria.
The LMC said it would review the decision after consulting the Federal Ministry of Health and the National Centre for Disease Control NCDC as well as the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development.
Matchday 25 fixtures were concluded on Wednesday and the LMC said the decision was to conform with the guidelines for containment of the spread of the global pandemic
