By Daily Sports on May 4, 2020

No doubt Covid-19 pandemic has put big K-leg in all facets of the World’s programme and to further put it mildly, things won’t be same for long time to come.

It is one disease that caught the entire world unawares thereby making the entire human race, even the super nations with their advance in medical breakthroughs look very ordinary. The resultant effect not only put them off balance but stood them still as all hands are on deck researching for the cure.

One will not conclude on this pandemic without reference to the accusations and counter accusations that have been raging between US President and China. Also France, England, and Germany have at one time or the order within this period accused China of complicity concerning this dreaded scourge. However scholars of international politics, sports analysts and sundry are keenly watching on what becomes of the World in post Covid-19 era.

Sadly, we can see clearly how badly the Federal Government has bungled the entire exercise, copying blindly and following what other nations are doing because those in charge are bereft of fresh ideas. The Nigerian government could not put on its thinking cap.  Their propaganda machine suddenly became blunt and immovable too. Imagine how Nigeria’s economy, that was already insolvent before the advent of this disease, is being saddled with this unfortunate debacle. 

Let us keep our fingers crossed. As we enter today, Monday 4, the Buhari/APC lockdown gradually eases. The insensitive government that could not get her priorities right on Covid-19 thus far (except the usual intervention of God that has kept us steady against all odds) is obviously pushing Nigerians into the raging war front. I digress.

This ought to be strictly sports discourse, however, I took consolation in fact that this sudden distraction like other sectors heavily affected sports as the game can never operate in isolation. Many applause from us here to the individuals that came to the rescue of athletes in terms of ‘palliatives’. The Sports Minister, Sunday Dare also announced last week of some stimulus package which most, if not all the elite athletes and some others penciled down have received.

Such gesture remains a laudable attempt in times like this as Buhari and his lame duck government did not care a hoot to look in the direction of athletes. Rather, they were busy using the supposed stimulus package  to play politics of enrichment  of their cronies and criminally ordered that obviously expired rice be shared out which the eagle eyed Oyo State government smashed and Ekiti State government followed suit by rejecting FG’s Greek gift. Since then Liar Mohammed, Shehu Garba, Festus Keyamo, Femi Adesina and their ilk are short of words.

Sports have done well in all ramifications in the development and unification of this sharply divided nation no manner how fragile but is roundly marginalised by the Federal Government that talks and takes decisions on drop of hat.

Nigerian athletes are the most patriotic ever. You need to be with them at tournaments or games of any kind abroad, then you would come to terms with this naked realities; how they carry this battered and not worth dying for country without ill feelings and  yet they are unfortunately treated like prophets that have no honour  in their own soil.

The palliatives money that was distributed to athletes’, no matter how little, remained the most right step in the right direction and this time without the usual attendant deafening noise by politicians’ as everything is politicised in Nigeria today. If nobody would thumb up these great patriots’ that provided succor to these athletes, this digital newspaper is in the fore front to do it.

We pray that this disease would vanish from the surface of this earth and let normalcy return. It is anticipated that normalcy would begin to return to Nigeria polity from 2021 because of the way and manner this government handles issues of this magnitude.

However it is left for sports stakeholders and administrators to take the bull by the horns and move forward as the world of sports never wait for sluggards of this globe to recover. One must use this medium to congratulate Sunday Dare for his doggedness thus far and if he would be honest to himself, would acknowledge the clear difference between the arena of sports and politics where he is coming from and what made him more.        

Let me be honest with you, Dare has dared well into sports administration cropping less controversy unlike his very silly immediate predecessor. He has endeared the confidence of stakeholders and the chances of investing into the sector are high, all things being equal. He has initiated solid moves that would practically move sports forward if implemented word for word and if the Nigerian factor did not creep in. Kudos to Sunday Dare as we keenly continue to watch his style of administration closely.

The issue of Super Eagles technical hand, Gernot Rohr contract renewal and NFF is yet to be laid to rest until the grey areas are harmonised by both parties or even otherwise i.e. for or against. If you follow the track closely, you must have read the latest stand of the Franco German on the issue which this writer thumbs him up for, including those managing him. That remains the way to go and it won’t be an overstatement if one says his managers are thorough with NFF politics. However whether as murky like larger Nigerian politics or not, fact is that the situation is expertly being managed.

Promise to ardent readers of this Monday weekly column in www.dailysportsng.com is that I am on top of it and would always keep you roundly updated on facts which are sacred. Another thing worth pointing out here also is the deep and intelligent administrative insight floated by suave administrator, former executive committee member of NFF and also former FA Chairman of Gombe State Football Association, Gara Gombe that NFF should invest its Covid-19 grant from FIFA. To say the very least, it is the best way to go if Amaju Pinnick and the other four that rules the country’s apex football governing body have listening ears.

The advice came up timely instead of sharing it as usual. If the money is invested, it would go along for the federation during the dry days. I really don’t know or have not read the reaction of Amaju Pinnick’s NFF reaction as at the time of putting this page to bed but every right thinking person must thumb Gombe up because that is the best way to go.

Truth is that like him or hates him, Gara Gombe is a big voice in sports and his view(s) must not be ignored by any patriotic federation official. He has honestly paid his dues in sports and other spheres of human endeavour. He calls spade by its name and Nigeria and Nigerians never like seeing such few faces. Gara Gombe is one of the few remaining football administrators’ but sadly, the system that rewards wrong people has erroneously ignored him, even in times like this when such people; if you like such few remaining round pegs, should be placed on equally few round holes if you are placing emphasis on accountability (i.e. if we are serious in every sense of the word).

Yes he has his own shortcomings as human. We know in the areas of administration he is sound and abhors corruption and its practices. FIFA Covid-19 grant of over 500,000 thousand USD should be invested. This one should not go the way numerous others of the past entered into private pockets of NFF bigwigs, their sycophants and selected sports journalists that draw support from misinforming the unsuspecting public according to the whims of their benefactors.

Nigeria has been at the cross roads since this government fraudulently found its way to power. The multiplier effects are enormous on the day to day lives of Nigerians be it sports, politics or business. Let us discuss these issues further on our social media handles. Daily Sports has proved a force to be reckoned with as you can assess and read us from any part of the world you reside, via Google worldwide. Keep shooting hard, till next week!!

Source Daily Sports

Posted May 4, 2020

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