The coach of Bayelsa United, Deprieye Tebowei has been called to a disciplinary hearing where he must present proof of his claims of biased officiating made after their MatchDay 4 match against Lobi Stars.
The Club’s Technical Adviser, Tebowei, was described in the media as accusing the match Referee of biased officiating in their 3-0 defeat in Makurdi, an action deemed misconduct by the Nigeria Premier Football League’s Interim Management Committee (IMC) (NPFL).
The hearing is planned for 1:00pm on February 7, 2023, at the league secretariat in Abuja.
In the summons addressed to Bayelsa United, the IMC Legal and Compliance Unit, wrote, “It has come to our attention that the Technical Adviser of Bayelsa United, Deprieye Tebowei, has made reckless and unguarded comments that questions the sporting integrity of the Nigeria Premier Football League.
“The comments which have been published on various media platforms were made after the Match Day 4 fixture: Lobi Stars FC vs. Bayelsa United FC.”
The club was reminded that the league has official channels through which complaints and grievances are to be communicated and addressed.
It went further to note that “Comments of this nature constitute misconduct under Rule C1 of the NPFL Framework and Rules, as it is capable of bringing the league to disrepute”,
Relying on Rule C9 of the NPFL Framework and Rules which requires “clubs to control their Players and Officials to ensure their proper conduct at all times, the IMC said that “Coach Deprieye Tebowei and the Chairman of Bayelsa United are hereby invited to a panel of inquiry setup in accordance with Rule C15 of the NPFL Framework and Rules”.
They are expected to come along with documents or other verifiable evidence to support the comments made after the match in reference.
