Barring any unforeseen developments, the IBB International Golf and Country Club in Abuja may remain closed until next year, following an escalating crisis over governance and structural reforms.
It will be recalled the club’s indefinite shutdown was announced by Club Captain, Ibrahim Babayo, leading to the postponement of the 2025 Annual General Meeting (AGM) and elections originally scheduled for April 26.
Renowned as one of Nigeria’s most prestigious golf destinations, the IBB Club has been embroiled in a leadership crisis tied to the appointment of a new Board of Trustees (BoT) and proposed amendments to its constitution.
The situation worsened when three members—Ubong Esop Akpan, Tijani Abdulsalam Ogueyi, and Olalere Babasola—obtained an interim order from the Federal High Court in Abuja, restraining the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, from inaugurating a BoT led by the President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem.
In a bid to stabilize the situation, Minister Wike appointed a ten-member Interim Management Committee (IMC), chaired by Peter Deshi, to oversee the club’s administration.
To avert further unrest, the Federal Government deployed operatives of the Nigeria Police and Department of State Services (DSS) to secure the premises. The facility remains under tight surveillance, with access restricted to essential personnel such as security officers and groundskeepers. Even IMC members are subject to identification checks before entry is granted.
Insiders disclosed that the closure is also being utilized as a window for comprehensive renovations aimed at upgrading the club to international standards. The overhaul—entrusted to Julius Berger, the original designer of the course in 1991—will be jointly funded by the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), Federal Ministry of Works, and the National Sports Commission (NSC).
As part of the preparatory measures, the IMC instructed members to remove personal belongings from the clubhouse, including valuables stored in lockers and golf buggies. The directive triggered a rush of members retrieving their items under strict security protocols.
Looking ahead, the IMC is reportedly working on a re-screening process for all members, which will be rolled out when the club eventually reopens.
The current impasse stems from a disrupted emergency meeting on March 13, 2025, convened to deliberate constitutional reforms and BoT tenure. The presence of DSS officials at the meeting underscored the gravity of the internal discord that has since snowballed into legal and administrative gridlock.
Meanwhile, Wike has again reiterated that the golf club belongs to the government not individuals.
He made this known during a media chat with selected journalists on Monday.
That building belongs to FCT. It was built by government but managed by people just as it is done all over the world. It is like government establishing a university and there is C of O to protect the land.
“Some individuals think they can convert the golf course into their own. I said no as we appoint board of trustees. And there was crisis which got to me. I invited them. Some members of the board of trustees have died and we appointed new members to oversee the day-to-day affair of the club,’ he said.
