Basketball players and enthusiasts from Northern Nigeria have endorsed the candidature of the Director General and Chief Executive Officer of the Energy Commission of Nigeria, Dr Mustapha Abdullahi, for the presidency of the Nigeria Basketball Federation.
The group, operating under the Northern Youth Union, declared its support for Abdullahi ahead of the NBBF Elective Congress scheduled for October 15, 2026.
Abdullahi formally declared his intention to contest the federation’s top position with a stated agenda focused on grassroots development, talent identification, infrastructure and improved welfare for players.
In a statement issued in Lafia, Nasarawa State, on Sunday, the Chairman of the Northern Youth Union Board of Trustees, Dr J.M. Abbah, said the endorsement followed consultations with youth stakeholders across the 19 northern states and the Federal Capital Territory.
Abbah also highlighted Abdullahi’s playing background, noting his involvement in basketball for more than two decades, including spells with Kano State teams, NUGA, Division One and Premier League sides, the U-18 national team and Trafford Basketball Club in Manchester, United Kingdom.
He further pointed to Abdullahi’s work through the Dr Abdullahi Mustapha Foundation, which he said has supported basketball development through the construction of a court in Kano, sponsorship of tournaments and the operation of a basketball academy involving more than 500 children.
According to Abbah, the foundation also organises the annual DAM Foundation Basketball Championship in Okene, Kogi State, while providing support through scholarships, medical assistance, business grants, employment facilitation and other welfare interventions for players.
The group also cited Abdullahi’s involvement in supporting the Great Vibes Basketball Foundation in Abuja as part of the reasons for its endorsement.
“As Director-General of the Energy Commission of Nigeria, Dr. Abdullahi has demonstrated executive-level strategic management and policy innovation needed to rebuild league structures, attract sustainable corporate sponsorship and enforce accountability,” Abbah said.
The Northern Youth Union also referenced the views of former NBA agent Ugo Udezue, arguing that Nigeria’s basketball challenge is not a shortage of talent but the need to develop stronger business structures around the sport.
The group said Abdullahi’s vision views basketball as an industry capable of creating employment and attracting investment, particularly within the broader development of the sport on the continent.
The union further said Abdullahi’s record of welfare interventions and assistance with employment opportunities for members of the basketball community demonstrated what it described as a people-focused approach.
If elected, the group said it expects his administration to pursue grassroots facilities across the country’s zones, regular and commercially sustainable leagues, improved welfare for the D’Tigers and D’Tigress, as well as wider opportunities for young basketball players.
The NBBF Elective Congress on October 15 will determine the federation’s next leadership as candidates campaign ahead of the vote.
Leave a comment