SPORTS DEVELOPMENT: Buhari sends signals



Amaju Pinnick admits that Nigeria is passing through difficult times but he is very hopeful that the country will be a better place for all with time.
His meeting with President Mohammadu Buhari has triggered some tremendous hope in the project Nigeria.
“Nothing good comes easy. Repairing Nigeria will not be easy for Buhari but I see him ending up like a Mandela,” Pinnick said after he accompanied Alhassan Yakmut to Aso Villa, last Monday.
The National Sports Commission was at the Villa to brief the President on next month’s All Africa Games in Congo and other sports matters and Pinnick, who is the President of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) was in the team led by Yakmut, the Director-General.
Pinnick left the Villa with a huge impression of the President, who has made more news fighting corruption than any other aspect of governance.
“Based on what I have seen of the President,” Amaju continues, “he is passionate about righting the wrongs in Nigeria and I don’t see him relenting. It therefore falls on Nigerians to strongly back his vision and work with his government to take Nigeria to the level we will all be proud of.”
Pinnick was at the Villa for sports but he spoke more on the personality, vision of Buhari and his burning desire to repair Nigeria including sports. Was he talking politics then? Let’s see.
When President Buhari spoke about sports, Pinnick’s respect for him grew more.
Yakmut had made a presentation that Pinnick described as brilliant. The President was said to have asked some questions thereafter and when football was mentioned, he retorted, “football will fetch only one medal but a sport like swimming will fetch many.”
The sports delegation was impressed. The President had sent a message to them. With that remark he had sent signals that he would like other sports developed too.
Buhari recognises that football is Nigeria’s number one sport but he probably recognises too that sports is a great employer of labour and given that creating jobs is one of his major objectives (the other two being tackling corruption and security problems) he would like to explore the opportunities sports could avail the economy especially in terms of employment of labour. Just some few words and the sports delegation had a picture of President Buhari’s mind.
Alhassan appreciates the direction better and has vowed to pursue the President’s dream of developing other sports. But he needs government’s funding and Corporate Nigeria to achieve Buhari’s dream. It means that the ball will still roll back to the President. The state of Nigerian sports requires a lot of government funding to develop facilities and athletes. This is simply so because we lack the stars that usually attract the corporate world. It is usually difficult for the corporate world to invest where they may not enjoy immediate gains. Stars attract visibility. And when there are no stars the companies rarely invest in sports. Only a few will do. That is what Nigerian sports is going through now.
However, it is a global phenomenon. But with the right government policies and dynamic sports administrators, great mileage can accrue to sports even in the aforesaid circumstance. But government should always lead the way and the corporate world will follow. And since our sports is below par the President is needed to show the light in many ways especially in funding. And he may establish the structure to monitor government’s investment in sports otherwise the hawks that have diminished our sports all these years will continue to prowl and our story will remain the same. Yakut has been around in sports and understands the terrain. He knows the difference great leadership will make. Pinnick says
Buhari has such great leadership qualities that he sees light at the end of the tunnel for Nigeria.
“I studied political science and I know what leadership can do for a nation,” Pinnick says, adding “Hanx Mongethau in his book  Politics Among Nations  said that the most important factor that makes a nation great is leadership because leadership is the only animic factor that coordinates all other factors for social development. That leadership is what Buhari is providing now. He is firm and passionate about rebuilding Nigeria.”




For the full story, check the Vanguard newspaper.









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