FORMER, secretary-general of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Taiwo Ogunjobi, is dead.
Ogunjobi was the chairman of the Osun State Football Association until his death early Monday morning after he failed to recover from a protracted illness.
The Nigerian Football Federation, NFF, in a tweet on Monday, confirmed the passing of their former scribe with a statement which reads
“We are sad to announce the shock demise of former Nigeria Int’l, Ex-NFF Gen. Sec., former NFF Executive Committee member, and current chairman, Osun State FA, Chief Taiwo Ogunjobi after a brief illness. Our prayers are with his family, relatives and the football family in Nigeria.”
We are sad to announce the shock demise of former Nigeria Int'l, Ex-NFF Gen. Sec., former NFF Executive Committee member, and current chairman, Osun State FA, Chief Taiwo Ogunjobi after a brief illness. Our prayers are with his family, relatives and the football family in Nigeria pic.twitter.com/lY1WIjoktc
— The NFF 🇳🇬 (@thenff) February 11, 2019
He was the captain of the former IICC Shooting Stars that dominated the Nigerian football landscape in the late 1970s and early 1980s and won two continental championships. The Ibadan-based football club is currently known as the 3SC Football Club.
His football career reached a high point when he was called up for the national team, Green Eagles after his impressive performance for Shooting Stars in 1974.
After an active football career, Ogunjobi went into administration and served as a secretary at his former club Shooting Stars.
From the secretary, he rose to become the General Manager of the club and then the sole administrator.
In 1999, he became the president of Gabros International (now FC Ifeanyi Ubah in Nnewi and had a stint as the General Manager of Lagos-based football club Julius Berger.
After serving as the Secretary-General of the NFF, Ogunjobi was appointed Chairman of the Technical Committee of the Nigerian Football Federation.
Ogunjobi hails from Osun state and attended African Church Grammar School and proceeded to Ibadan Grammar School for his Higher School Certificate (HSC). He bagged his first degree at Clemson University in the United States of America before returning to the country in 1999.
Born in 1953, he died at the age of 65 on Monday, February 11 and is survived by his wife and five children.
Amos Abba is a journalist with the International Center for Investigative Reporting, ICIR, who believes that courageous investigative reporting is the key to social justice and accountability in the society.