The Governor Douye Diri-led Bayelsa State Government has called reports of Bayelsa United signing a new shirt sponsorship deal with Halkin Exploration and Production Limited for the remainder of the 2023–24 NPFL season “embarrassing.”
In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Daniel Alabrah, the government claimed that it was not aware of any such agreement involving the state-owned team and that it had neither approved nor endorsed such an agreement during the current football season.
According to reports, Halkin Exploration and Production Limited had been at the center of the controversy surrounding the alleged acquisition of Oil Mining Lease 46 (also known as the Atala Oilfield) belonging to the Bayelsa State Government.
Governor Douye Diri had fought the revocation of the OML 46 license by the defunct Department of Petroleum Resources in April 2020, claiming that the oilfield was “a prized asset of the state.”
“The state governor, Senator Diri, expresses surprise and embarrassment over reports of a new kit sponsorship deal signed by the state-owned football team, Bayelsa United. The Governor wishes to unequivocally place on record that he is not aware of any such deal involving Bayelsa United and Halkin Exploration and Production Limited.”
“Governor Diri has consequently directed the Commissioner for Youth and Sports Development, Daniel Igali, and the Bayelsa United chairman, Ebiki Timitimi, to immediately halt the process pending the conclusion of a full-scale investigation into the matter,” the statement read.
It explained that preliminary investigations revealed that the deal failed to comply with due diligence and the necessary approvals from the relevant authorities.
