Rejoinder: Addressing Slanderous Attempts by Abubakar Abubakar on the Person of Hon. Khamisu Ahmed Mailantarki, President of Mailantarki Care FC, Abuja
By Adamu Usman Ahmed
The management of Mailantarki Care FC, Abuja, has noted with grave concern, the false, malicious, and misleading claims made by Abubakar Abubakar (Yellow) while granting an interview to a Morning Sports, a weekday English program by Amana Radio on Friday 18th April, 2025 in Gombe.
The fabricated statements made by Abubakar (Yellow) in its entirety was disgraceful to the Nigeria’s National team (U-20) for its official (Coordinator) who is neither a Media Manager nor the Administrative Secretary, to appear suddenly and without authorisation, on air for such spurious assertions aimed at tarnishing the remarkable image and overwhelming efforts of Honorable Khamisu Ahmed Mailantarki on football development in Gombe State and Nigeria at large.
Abubakar blatantly lied during the radio interview on an internal issue concerning two clubs that he (Abubakar) was never in any point in time part of both teams (Mailantarki Care FC and Doma United FC) in whatsoever capacity neither was he a representative of the player in question (Haruna Aliyu) nor a spokesman of the National Team (U-20) or its administrative secretary.
In fact, during the partnership formalities of Haruna Aliyu between the two clubs in 2023, Abubakar was a coordinator at Gombe United and until date, he has never been part of any of the two clubs regarding any partnership of whatsoever player hence he had no genuine information to disseminate in public domain.
In his desperation to attack our club president’s effort on football development and progress in Gombe State and Nigeria at large by directly linking the exclusion of Gombe-born defender Haruna Aliyu in the final list of the National team U-20 ahead of the upcoming 2025 AFCON in Egypt.
To set the record straight, Hon Khamisu Mailantarki’s effort to elevate/promote Gombe State indigenes to the highest level of their respective football career, ensured an agreement reached between the two clubs and secured the services of the player (Haruna Aliyu) who further facilitated his invitation for a trial and consequently amazed the technical crew under the then U-20 National team Head Coach Isa Ladan Bosso ahead of the 13th African Games held in Ghana.
While Hon Mailantarki was busy sponsoring qualified Gombe State indigenes to a historic European tour in Denmark and Norway through his club, Mailantarki Care FC, instead of receiving motivations through commendations and accolades from the stakeholders in the state, people like Abubakar Abubakar opted for tort against the humble person of the President of the Mailantarki Care FC despite the fact that he operates as club owner with many officials including the club Technical Director, multi award-winning gaffer Manu Garba OON, the head coach of National team (U-17).
Thanks to the likes of Honorable Farouk Yarma, who provided an annual sports awards event (Prudential Sports Awards) for honoring outstanding sports individuals in the state, and of course in its maiden event Mailantarki was awarded for his immense contributions to grassroots football development in Gombe State.
More so on the issue raised regarding Aminu Muhammed (Obi) and Ibrahim Yahaya, who Abubakar falsely claimed were maltreated by our principle, which stand in contrast to the fact that both Aminu and Ibrahim were players of Mailantarki Care FC through a legitimate contractual agreement by their respective owners, and in the spirit of sportsmanship and the love of Gombe State, both players were allowed on free loan to continue playing for Gombe United considering their significant impacts towards the performance of the club in 2022/2023 season.
Both players are still rightful players of Mailantarki Care FC and are highly indebted with the show of great concern, commitment, and unending support towards their career development at various levels which includes successful outings with the National team U-20 at Niger Republic 2022 WAFU games in addition to a recent trial trip for Ibrahim Yahaya at Danish Super League club Aarhus Gymnastik Forening.
The then acting General Manager of Gombe United Abubakar Abubakar had deliberately blocked a potential career development trip facilitated by Mailantarki Care FC for the duo (Aminu and Yahaya) when they were clear favorite to clinch a professional contract with top European clubs moment after their brilliant outings at the WAFU 2022 zonal competition in Niger Republic, a move that could have generate an income to Gombe United as well.
Hon Mailantarki’s unending efforts towards the success and progress of young talented footballers in Gombe State and across the country Muhammed that he fully sponsored the first Gombe player Auwal Muhammed Adamu (Auwalulu) to secure a professional contract in one of the European clubs (Gandzasar FC, Armenia) in addition to young sensational full-back Jabir Hassan who is currently trading tackles with a Serbian club.
So many other players are currently undergoing trials in various elite development squads, beside several opportunities offered to Gombe based players for their respective career development through his Abuja based main team and the Gombe based U-17 feeders, Mailantarki is on the verge of sponsoring more qualified talents to yet another European scouting tours before the end of the current 2025 football calendar where more potential transfers are expected.
Abubakar’s lame attempt to smear Mailantarki’s praiseworthy efforts in the development of footballers’ career had ridiculed himself against the well-established facts and record of players sponsored by Mailantarki (Flight ticket, accommodations, feeding, visas etc) to successful or otherwise trials in various European clubs while others formed part of the contingents that travelled to the 2022 and 2024 glorious international tours in Denmark and Norway as follows.
(Other Geo-political zones players not mentioned as we intended to repute the wrongly assertions by Abubakar Abubakar, who discredited the efforts of Mailantarki on the progress of Northern Players)
Gombe State:
Auwalu Muhammed Auwalulu (Gandzasar FC, Armenia), Abdulrahman Saidu (Salgeuros FC, Portugal), Sadeeq MB (Jammerbug FC, Denmark), Babawo Ibrahim (Jammerbugt FC, Denmark) Isiyaku Ligu (Denmark and Norway Cups), Amos John (Denmark and Norway Cups), Hamisu Ibrahim (Denmark and Norway Cups), Abdulazeez Maiyadi (Denmark and Norway Cups), Ibrahim Sani (Denmark and Norway cups), Adamu Gambo (Denmark and Norway cups), Abdulazeez Musa Bappa (Denmark and Norway cups).
Bauchi State:
Manji Williams (FK Abdish-Ata Kant, Kyrgyzstan), Sadiq Abdullahi (Jammerbug, Denmark), Promise Damala (Jammerbugt, Denmark), Nasiru Jibrin (Jammerbugt, Denmark), Abubakar Lamido (Denmark and Norway cups), Idris Ashiru (OPS Finland), Abdullahi Isa (Mosta FC, Malta).
Kano State:
Miko Dalha (Denmark and Norway cups), Usman Muhammed (Denmark and Norway cups), Hashim Muhammed (DFK Daivana, Lithuania), Usman Ghali (Jammerbugt IF, Denmark), Ishaq Usaini (Çorum FC, Turkey), Sabi’u Ibrahim (Aarhus FC, Denmark), Khalil Sammani (FDC Vista, Russia).
Adamawa State:
Ishaya Yuguda (St. Andrews FC, Malta), Silas Alfred (Hibbernians FC, Malta), Simon Gaston (Jammerbugt FC, Denmark), Auwal Abba (Mosta FC, Malta).
Benue State:
Victor Ochayi (Septemvri Sofia, Bulgaria), Miracle Williams (Kryvbas Rih, Ukraine)
FCT, Abuja:
Izuchukwu Daniel (FC Van, Armenia), Joel Zachariah (Monaco FC, France)
Borno State:
Tijjani Mohammed (Hammarby IF, Sweden).
Yobe State: Muhammed Abdullahi (Jammerbugt IF, Denmark).
Katsina State:
Yusha’u Armiya’u (Fredek-Mistek FC, Poland)
Abubakar, who is deploying all possible means to divert the attention of Gombe State football stakeholders and enthusiasts of the round leather game from his inability to facilitate even a trial call-up to any of Gombe State talented stars in the National team U-20 hence his desperate defamatory and baseless claims on the person of Honorable Khamisu Ahmed Mailantarki, who established himself as one of the brightest football club owners/administrators in Northern Nigeria and the country at large.
The Nigeria Football Federation NFF’s decision to de-list the player in question, Haruna Aliyu from the final list of the upcoming U-20 AFCON in Egypt was best known to them as the apex football governing body in the country, which has several committees under which respective decisions are made, and as at the time of writing this response there is no official statement issued yet by any of the NFF’s committees in that regard, beside they are at liberty of not issuing any statement since a certain number of players must be shortlisted from the invited players based on the recommendation of the team’s technical crew.
However, while we await a possible official statement regarding the reason for the player’s absence from the final list, we at Mailantarki Care FC are saddened with the development, especially on the part of the club president who champion the cause of Haruna’s National team assignment few years back.
Most likely, the decision could be connected to the conflict of interest on the player’s part whom was ill-advised and misled to signed another different contract despite having a binding pre-contract agreement with Mailantarki Care FC, a decision amount to a breach of contract, an act that can cause instability in the player’s psychological prowess as the shenanigans took place while he was in his final camping exercise ahead of the upcoming U-20 AFCON slated to kick start in few days.
Haruna Aliyu had already agreed and signed a pre-contract with Mailantarki Care FC that is binding, hence becomes a player of Mailantarki at the end of the current Nigeria National League (NNL) 2024/2025 season, the development ensured after the player’s decision not to extend his contract with his present club Doma United beyond the 2024/2025 season.
A pretence Abubakar Abubakar went further to even dragged the name of a high-profile staff of the NFF, Nasiru Jibrin, whom he said the latter clears ways and gave a go ahead to legitimized an act of ‘conflict of interest’ against the rule book of the apex football governing body.
Just so you know, Mailantarki Care FC made a name for itself in the football industry for its unique identity and accomplishments in just 4 years of existence so far where several talented players successfully transferred to various clubs in Europe, wins three International Youth Championships in a remarkable record breaking outings in Norway (Norway Cup) and Denmark (Dana Cup) in its debut year 2022 and 2024 respectively, won Abuja FA Cup, promoted to the 2nd tier of the league among others.
Furthermore, in its debut year of existence in 2021, the club held the first-ever scouting tournament (Gombe to Europe) involving European football managers in the history of Gombe State, a successful program held at the Pantami Stadium that paved way to so many Gombe State indigenes to travel to various European clubs especially Portugal and Denmark.
Upon completing its multi-billion naira ‘Mailantarki Sports Complex’ in the heart of Abuja, the club will become the standout among its peers not only in Nigeria but the continent at large, so the likes of Abubakar Abubakar, should rather follow suits in aiding headways to achieve an optimal desired success of the beautiful game of football in Gombe State and Nigeria at large.
Adamu Usman Ahmed ASM, AMInsTA
Director of Media and Communications
Mailantarki Care FC
Abuja, Nigeria.
