FIFA Council election: How Pinnick was schemed out

CC™ PersPective

By Jacob Ajom

At the 14th Confederation of African Football(CAF) Extraordinary General Assembly held on Wednesday in Cairo, Egypt, former President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Amaju Pinnick failed in his bid to be re-elected into the FIFA council. Pinnick garnered 28 votes—just one vote short of Mauritania’s Ahmed Yahya and Djibouti’s Souleiman Waberi, who secured the final two available slots.

Sports Vanguard gathered that the Nigerian candidate was coasting home as there were indications that he was the clear favorite until the eve of the election when a major conspiracy was hatched by his opponents.

Pinnick, we further gathered, was the favourite candidate of both CAF and FIFA Presidents Patrice Mosepe and Gianni Infantino respectively. His closeness to the two powerful figures in world football, his charisma and influence were perceived as major threats by the other contestants, most of whom are still serving FA Presidents of their various countries.

Our source put it more succinctly: “It was the power of incumbency against the helplessness of one being out of office that came to play in Cairo. Just like in Nigeria, where State FA Chairmen wield the big stick when it comes to NFF elections, in Cairo, the FA Presidents hold the ace.

“The other candidates who are FA chairmen and Presidents felt that since Pinnick was no longer President of Nigeria’s federation he could be sacrificed. They ganged up against him when they were deciding on who should be favoured” our source who was in Cairo said.

“Remember, most of them are serving FA Presidents in their respective countries and they felt that since Pinnick was no longer the head of his country’s football federation he could be dispensed with without much harm to their own political fortunes.”

He added, “Untill then, he was ahead with at about 40 votes. But overnight, everything changed and the battle assumed a new direction.”

Coming from an English-speaking country did not help his case one bit.

Our source said, “Pinnick fought a good fight.I’m surprised he got up to 28 votes. When the conspiracy plan was hatched, no one gave him any chance of getting even four votes. To have battled all the odds and got 28 votes overnight, he fought a good fight.”

A battle-weary Pinnick himself alluded to that when he said after the results were announced. “Football politics is fierce, but I am proud to have fought a good fight. I campaigned hard; travelled to more than 30 countries. Hours before the election, I was sure of close to 40 votes. But politics happened. I am not bitter about anything, just full of gratitude to everyone who supported my push.”

Pinnick made history as the third Nigerian to be elected into the FIFA Council, following Oyo Orok Oyo and Amos Adamu. He first secured his seat in March 2021 during the 43rd CAF Ordinary General Assembly in Rabat, Morocco.

Prior to his FIFA role, Pinnick served as the president of the NFF for two consecutive terms, from 2014 to 2022, before being succeeded by Ibrahim Gusau.

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Judge blocks Trump from deporting non-citizens using wartime law

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A federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration from using a wartime law to deport migrants accused of links to the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.

US District Judge James Boasberg also ordered any planes carrying those migrants to return to the US.

Earlier Saturday, the Trump administration invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, which allows deportation of undocumented immigrants during war or foreign threats.

Boasberg blocked the removal of five individuals challenging the move, later expanding the ruling to cover all affected noncitizens in US custody.

“Particularly given the plaintiffs’ information, unrebutted by the government, that flights are actively departing and planning to depart, I do not believe that I’m able to wait any longer,” Boasberg said. “Any plane containing these folks that is going to take off or is in the air needs to be returned to the United States.”

The temporary restraining order will last 14 days or until further court action.

“I think there’s clearly irreparable harm here given these folks will be deported,” Boasberg added. “A brief delay in their removal does not cause the government any harm.”

The Justice Department has appealed the ruling.

A White House proclamation cited Tren de Aragua as a terrorist organisation, stating its members have “unlawfully infiltrated the United States and are conducting irregular warfare and undertaking hostile actions.”

The Alien Enemies Act has been used three times in US history, all during war, including World War II, when it contributed to Japanese internment, according to the Brennan Center.

The ACLU, arguing against its use, said the gang’s actions do not meet the legal definition of an invasion.

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It’s not for Russia to decide on peacekeepers in Ukraine – French President Macron

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By Matthew Atungwu

French President Emmanuel Macron said the stationing of peacekeeping troops in Ukraine, as proposed by Britain and France as part of a ceasefire agreement with Russia, is a question for Kyiv to decide and not Moscow.

Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer have reportedly been rushing to consolidate military support for Ukraine as US President Donald Trump presses for a peace deal with Russia.

It could be recalled that Starmer hosted a virtual meeting on Saturday with Macron and other non-US allies of Ukraine.

“Ukraine is sovereign. If it asks for allied forces to be on its territory, it’s not something for Russia to accept or not,” Macron said.

Russia has repeatedly rejected the idea of soldiers from countries belonging to the NATO alliance being stationed in Ukraine.

According to Macron, any peacekeeping force would consist of a few thousand troops per country to be deployed at key locations, adding a number of European and non-European countries were interested in participating.

However, like other aspects of a potential truce, the form of any peacekeeping force remains uncertain.

Finland’s President Alexander Stubb has said that that any firm commitments would come once there was a clear plan.

“There are anywhere from zero to 50 different ways they can help, boots on the ground is only one way. You can talk about intelligence, you can talk about different types of things but it’s too early to commit right now,” he said.

Britain and France both stated that they could send peacekeepers to Ukraine, while Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said his country was also open to requests.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that he supported in principle Washington’s proposal for a 30-day ceasefire with Ukraine but that his forces would fight on until several crucial conditions were worked out.

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Elon Musk’s SpaceX Starship explodes in space

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SpaceX’s massive Starship spacecraft exploded in space on Thursday, minutes after lifting off from Texas, marking the second consecutive failure this year for Elon Musk’s Mars rocket programme. 

The explosion prompted the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to halt air traffic in parts of Florida.

Several videos circulating on social media showed fiery debris streaking across the dusk skies near South Florida and the Bahamas after the spacecraft broke apart. 

SpaceX’s live stream of the mission captured the moment Starship began to spin uncontrollably, with its engines shutting down before contact was lost.

The failure of this eighth Starship test comes just over a month after the seventh ended in a similar explosive failure. 

Both incidents occurred during early mission phases that SpaceX had previously surpassed with ease, presenting a setback for Musk’s ambitious timeline to accelerate the program this year. 

The 403-foot (123-meter) rocket system remains central to his plan to send humans to Mars by the turn of the decade.

The FAA briefly grounded flights at Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Palm Beach, and Orlando airports due to “space launch debris.” It later announced an investigation into the mishap.

The launch took place at around 6:30 p.m. ET (2330 GMT) from SpaceX’s Boca Chica, Texas, facilities. The Super Heavy first-stage booster successfully returned to Earth as planned and was caught midair by a SpaceX crane. 

However, the upper stage of Starship encountered issues shortly after reaching space, Reuters reported.

SpaceX’s live feed showed the vehicle spinning uncontrollably, with a visualization indicating multiple engine shutdowns. 

Soon after, the company lost contact with the spacecraft. Referencing the previous failure, SpaceX spokesperson Dan Huot remarked on the live stream, “Unfortunately this happened last time too, so we’ve got some practice now.”

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Trump blinks, backs off Mexico, Canada tariffs after market blowback

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US President Donald Trump on Thursday unveiled a temporary rollback to steep tariffs targeting Canada and Mexico, providing some reprieve to companies and consumers after sustained blowback on global markets.

After his sweeping tariffs of up to 25 percent on the two US neighbors took effect Tuesday, stock markets tumbled, as economists warned that blanket tariffs could weigh on US economic growth and raise inflation in the near-term.

Though the Republican president dismissed suggestions that his trade decisions were linked to market turmoil, he decided to pause the levies for trade with Canada and Mexico that falls under a regional pact.

Trump also lowered the new 25 percent levy on Canadian potash, a key element of fertilizer which US officials said their country does not produce much of.

The tariff halt — which lasts until April 2 — came one day after the White House also announced a temporary reprieve for automakers.

The moves make conditions “much more favorable for our American car manufacturers,” Trump said Thursday.

But he added that major moves would be unveiled on April 2, the date that he has promised updates on “reciprocal tariffs” to remedy practices Washington deems unfair.

At that point, Canadian and Mexican goods could still face levies.

The US president also said he would not modify tariffs for steel and aluminum, which are due to take effect next week.

– ‘Good’ relationship with Mexico –

On the tariff halt for some Mexican goods, Trump said earlier on Truth Social that he “did this as an accommodation, and out of respect for” President Claudia Sheinbaum, adding: “Our relationship has been a very good one.”

His remarks stood in sharp contrast to the simmering tensions with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Trudeau said Thursday that Ottawa will remain in a trade war with Washington for “the foreseeable future” even if there are “breaks for certain sectors.”

“Our goal remains to get these tariffs, all tariffs removed,” Trudeau added.

– ‘Economic reality’ –

For Scott Lincicome, vice president of general economics at the Cato Institute, Trump’s easing of tariffs on Mexico was “a recognition of economic reality.”

The move was an acknowledgment that tariffs disrupt supply chains, that the burden of levies fall to consumers, and “that the market doesn’t like them and certainly doesn’t like the uncertainty surrounding them,” Lincicome told AFP.

Since taking office for his second term in January, Trump has made a series of tariff threats on allies and adversaries alike.

Trump justified the tariffs on Washington’s two neighbors and vital trade partners, along with China, as a way to stop illegal immigration and trafficking of the deadly drug fentanyl.

However, Canada contributes less than one percent of fentanyl to the illicit US supply, according to Canadian and US government data. It is also a relatively minor source of illegal immigration, compared to flows across the Mexican border.

China, meanwhile, has pushed back on US allegations of its role in the fentanyl supply chain, calling this a domestic issue that tariffs will not resolve.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Thursday that he was not concerned Trump’s tariffs would be inflationary, adding that any impact on prices would likely be temporary.

Trump has referred to tariffs as a source of US government revenue, and a way to remedy trade imbalances and unfair trade practices.

The US trade deficit surged to a new record in January, according to government data released Thursday.

The overall trade gap of the world’s biggest economy ballooned 34 percent to $131.4 billion, on the back of a jump in imports for the month, said the Commerce Department.

Analysts say the US deficit was likely bolstered by gold imports, but data also suggests businesses were importing more goods to try to get ahead of potential tariffs.

VANGUARD