New IE President In The Making


IE 2004 Lineup


By Julu M. Johnson, Jr.

      June 11, 2004-Within days, the vacuum created by the departure of Mrs. Kadiattu Diarrah-Findley from the helm of the Invincible Eleven (IE) would be filled.

    It has been reliably learnt that Isaac Nyenabo, Comptroller of the Ministry of Finance, is poised to be the next President of IE.

    Seemingly, little is known about him as far as sports administration is concerned, nonetheless, supporters of IE are gearing up for the speedy transfer of power to the Finance Ministry official.

     Already, IE gurus have hinted that Mr. Nyenabo has begun assisting the team with huge funds that would put it back on its feet. With Nyenabo in charge, the team would possibly compete with rivals Mighty Barrolle, a source indicated.

    It was revealed that Mr. Nyenabo has been the club's source of income these days. He has reportedly provided per diems and cleared some salary arrears.

    It was also disclosed that Mr. Nyenabo had given US$500 to the IE basketball squad before the match with the LPRC Oilers in the LBF national league playoff on Wednesday. Additionally, Mr. Nyenabo is said to have splashed US$800 to the IE soccer team to cover preparations for the league match with LISCR FC on Sunday. The amount would also enable the team camp at the Baptist Seminary on Roberts Field Highway, another source said.

    The Promoters of Liberian Athletes (PROLA) who have been monitoring the situation said Mr. Nyenabo is the right man for the job.

     PROLA Chairman Joseph Farkollie believes that with the love Mr. Nyenabo has for the game of soccer, there is no doubt that he will do better.

     The preferment of Mr. Nyenabo is a slap in the face to presidential aspirant H. Varney Sherman who also expressed his interest in the IE job previously.

     Some IE officials, who were lobbying for Cllr. Sherman's ascendancy are now accusing their colleagues of deceit.

     Their argument is that Cllr. Sherman equally has the money to spend on IE as compared to what Mr. Nyenabo is doing.

      Despite the protest from Sherman's supporters, Nyenabo stands out as the favorite because he has the backing of the technical staff and playing body of the team, who have been getting the pinch of IE's plight.

     Nyenabo, the undisputed heir to the IE throne, has a very tough task ahead of him as far as the IE presidency is concerned. This is arguably the most difficult job in Liberian soccer.

     Everyone has seen how several presidents honorably took over the club but left in shame. They include Wilbert A. Jefferson Hoff, Ben Tutu Donnie, Nathan Dahn and Grace Beatrice Minor.

    The latest victim is the die-hard Kadiattu Diarrah-Findley.

       As a staunch lover of the team, dating back to the days of the late President Samuel Kanyon Doe era, coupled with her then status as former President Charles Taylor's closest aide, better still Special Assistant to the President, IE supporters felt the need to call her to rescue the team. After many have failed, they also wanted to give her a try.

    But following a glamorous inaugural ceremony at the Bernard's Beach, with the then First Lady Jewel Taylor, Chief Justice Gloria Scott and Finance Minister Nathaniel Barnes in attendance, all her promises disappeared.

     With the amount of money that was raised in pledges and donations, it was everyone's guess that the once famous Sunshine Yellow Boys were returning to their good old days, but that was not the case.

     The next trend of events witnessed the persistent absence of Mrs. Findley from IE's activities. Yet one could still not believe that someone who used to "put her life on the line" for the sake of the Yellow Boys could abandon the club in split seconds.

    An investigation was then conducted at which time it was gathered that Mrs. Findley had agreed with her husband, Milton Gbehzongar Findley, who is a Barrolle supporter. As far as the agreement was concerned, neither of the couple was to give a helping hand to their clubs in order to avoid one side dominating the other in whatsoever manner.

     To make the claims true, John Smythe took over as caretaker even though Mrs. Findley was still based in Monrovia and known on paper as the President of IE. At the same time, two vice presidents, Edward Forson and Sam Browne turned in their resignations.

     Since then, Mr. Smythe and Vice President Malike Dukuly have been running the affairs of the club.