\u201cSports should be protected from the \u2018toxic\u2019 politics of individuals who try to sow disunity at a time when football has united the nation,\u201d he said.\n<\/p>\n
He added, \u201cWanting to insert yourself into a victory that you did not contribute to, and a team that you did not even acknowledge until they won, is not only opportunistic, it falls beneath the standard of behaviour expected from a statesman, who should know that their first port of call should be the Head of State.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
The controversy followed Obi\u2019s allegation that NFF officials prevented him from greeting the Flamingos<\/a> when they returned to Abuja from Morocco after winning the FIFA U-17 Women\u2019s World Cup.<\/p>\n Obi said he arrived at the Abuja airport at about 7am on Monday to board a flight to Enugu when he sighted the team.\n<\/p>\n He said he asked his protocol officer, Jackie Wayas, to find out whether he could greet and welcome the players but was informed that NFF officials had refused his request.<\/p>\n He also alleged that the officials warned they could lose their jobs if they allowed him to approach the players, describing the incident as another example of what he called toxic politics.\n<\/p>\n However, the Chairman of the National Sports Commission, Shehu Dikko, rejected Obi\u2019s account<\/a>, saying officials who accompanied and received the Flamingos did not see the former governor around the players or the international terminal.\n<\/p>\n Dikko said two individuals wearing Obi\u2019s campaign face caps and other campaign attire approached officials to request a meeting and photographs with the players.\n<\/p>\n He explained that the request was declined because it was made without prior arrangement and the players were tired after their journey from Morocco.\n<\/p>\n He also disputed Obi\u2019s claim that officials risked losing their jobs over the matter and urged the former governor to apologise to the players, arguing that the controversy had shifted attention away from their achievement.\n<\/p>\n Similarly, the Director-General of the National Institute for Sports, Philip Shaibu, said Obi could have waved at the players like other Nigerians<\/a> at the airport rather than seeking a meeting with them.\n<\/p>\n Speaking on Channels Television\u2019s Morning Brief on Tuesday, Shaibu argued that the support given to athletes before and during competitions was more important than seeking to celebrate with them after victories.<\/p>\n He also maintained that President Bola Tinubu had supported the team during the tournament.\n<\/p>\n![\"Peter](\"https:\/\/cdn.punchng.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/25071139\/Peter-Obi-latest_1790316699.webp\")