The Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, Wednesday finally delisted Insurance Football Club from its register and replaced it with Bendel Insurance Football Club of Benin. The club will however play in the first division next season.
The registration of Bendel Insurance FC marked the end of the takeover of the club by Chief Igbinomwanhia Ekhoshuehi 13 years ago.
An elated Edo State Commissioner of Sports, Brown Ebewele, smiled as he informed in Abuja that “Bendel Insurance Football Club is back” after the registration formalities with the NFF were concluded.
The quick resolution of the crisis however followed Chief Ekhoshuehi’s decision to surrender the ownership of the club which tussle lasted over a year.
In a sudden turn of event, he wrote to the government to voluntarily hand over the club.
“We have voluntarily decided to give His Excellency, Professor Oserheimen Osunbor, the governor of Edo State, the club (Insurance Football Club) on this day, 4thAugust 2008, believing that this prized institution of our state will not die”, he wrote in the letter.
Chief Ekhoshuehi further appealed to the government to compensate him “for not allowing the club to go into extinction just like the New Nigeria Bank Football Club of Benin.”
But in a swift reaction, Ebewele said government could not take over Insurance Football Club because it is a limited liability company owned by Chief Ekhoshuehi.
“Since Bendel Insurance Football Club Limited is still in existence and doing business as far as the Corporate Affairs Commission is concerned, government has therefore decided that the club should be registered in place of Insurance FC in the 2008/2009 football season”, Ebewele said.
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