The organising and disciplinary committee of Nigeria's football federation charged Shooting Stars Sports Club (3SC) of Ibadan's striker Gbolahan Salami for attempting to assault a match official after his team's game against Crown Football Club at the MKO Abiola Stadium in Abeokuta. The NFF committee subsequently handed him a one-year suspension in a hearing in which the player was absent from. Salami was also expelled from the camp of the Nigerian men's national team, the Super Eagles, in Abuja in the wake of the punishment. According to supersport.com, the coach of 3SC, Fatai Amoo, claimed that Salami, who was 3SC's captain on the day, never had the intention of attacking a match official as alleged insisting that he just wanted to have a few words with the referee, as we see players do at the end of matches in top leagues across the world. It is our opinion that a one-year ban is excessive, destructive and most likely not a product of a careful hearing and deliberation process considering the fact that the career and future of a talented young Nigerian is at stake. While we do not support acts of indiscipline that may undermine the quality and integrity of the local league, we believe that the constituted football authority also have a role to play in properly guiding and channeling our current players towards a positive future and we agree with the opinion that there are other ways to sanction an erring player even if found guilty. We simply do not want a repeat of questionable decisions like that of Razak Omotoyosi who had to leave his homeland Nigeria in tears and is now a productive citizen of Benin Republic after a ridiculous 5-year ban by the NFA. This petition will be mailed to various Nigerian and international news outlets by March 7, 2011. If you support this petition for a review of Gbolahan Salami's 1-year ban, please add your signature below.

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