NJF Board Rejects Caretaker Committee, Insists Oshodi Remains In Charge

The Nigeria Judo Federation (NJF) has rejected reports that the National Sports Commission (NSC) has dissolved its board and approved a caretaker committee, insisting that the board led by Dr Musa Oshodi remains in charge.

In a statement issued on Friday and signed by the Special Assistant on Media, Femi Ojo, in the Office of the NJF President, the federation described the reports as false and urged stakeholders to disregard the purported caretaker committee list.

The federation accused Ngozi Amayo and her associates of circulating the information, alleging that they were attempting to take control of the federation. It also claimed that Amayo had previously been dismissed by the NJF board over alleged financial misappropriation and the handling of the federation’s affairs.

The allegations against Amayo were made by the federation in the statement.

The NJF maintained that neither the International Judo Federation (IJF) nor the NSC had dissolved its board, adding that its ongoing constitutional review and preparations for fresh elections were being conducted in line with directives from the international governing body.

According to the statement, the IJF wrote to Oshodi on 18 September 2026, approving the federation’s draft amended constitution and directing it to convene a General Assembly to consider and approve the document.

The federation said the revised constitution would guide the forthcoming election scheduled for November.

It disclosed that its General Assembly had been scheduled for 12 to 14 October, with delegates arriving on Monday, 12 October, holding the meeting on Tuesday, 13 October, and departing on Wednesday, 14 October.

The meeting, initially scheduled for Abuja, has been moved to Ibadan, Oyo State.

The NJF said its members, state chairmen and secretaries, as well as the IJF, NSC and Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC), had been notified of the meeting.

It added that the electoral committee and election date would be approved at the General Assembly.

The federation also challenged the legality of the purported dissolution, citing provisions of the International Olympic Committee’s Olympic Charter, the IJF Statutes and its own constitution.

It argued that sports federations should retain their autonomy and that the NJF General Assembly was the appropriate body to amend its constitution and appoint an electoral committee.

The statement further cited Section 16(2) of the National Sports Commission Establishment Act 2023, arguing that the NSC could not dissolve a federation’s board without the approval of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

The federation maintained that no such approval had been obtained in its case and described any purported dissolution as invalid.

The NSC had been reported to have approved a caretaker committee for the NJF, but the federation’s statement disputed that account.

The NJF urged judokas and other stakeholders to remain calm, disregard the purported caretaker committee list and support its efforts to work with the IJF to develop the sport in Nigeria.