By Daily Sports on January 17, 2022

Nigeria ought to be a much more blessed country in every sense of the word if right leadership is bestowed on her each election year. Nigeria used to be a one-accord country and Nigerians used to be his/her brothers/sisters keepers.

However, since the cursed second coming of Muhammadu Buhari, he turned Nigeria upside down. He became a big pain in the neck of the citizenry, divided the country; totally disregarded her diversity. He entrenched ethnic jingoism to the fullest. He became deaf, dumb and sightless in all that are happening, no matter how bloody and outrageous.

What you normally get from his boys, Garba and Adesina, would be issuance of mere press statements and there ends it. I am one person that doesn’t allow injustice pass under my nose without raising a voice. How dare you!

Now, the biggest football showpiece in the continent is on in Cameroon. Nigeria’s flagship team, the Super Eagles are right there in the thick, middle and mix of the battle. The boys and their officials are stressing themselves, sweating through their pants, in their spirited bid to bring honour to their fatherland.

In the past, before even the tournament kicked off, many big football bigwig enthusiasts came out boldly to encourage the team to go all out to make the country proud. Whether you agree with this columnist or not, money answers everything. That power of money promised them gives them (the boys) more zeal and impetus to die on the pitch, playing to win.

However, it is heart-warming to note that former President of the Senate and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Anyim Pius Anyim’s message to the Super Eagles, in faraway Goraua, Cameroun, needs to be applauded by objective analysts, pundits and keen followers of the national team.

Anyim Pius Anyim is a Lawyer and disarmingly an unassuming personality who does not carry airs around himself. He is suave and his administrative instincts are also dripping. He does not blow hot air or talk on drop-of-the-hat like most Nigerian politicians. 

We can tell of his records when he held forth in the Senate as President at a relatively younger age then. He held the Upper Legislative Chamber high, maintaining its integrity when the dictator Olusegun Obasanjo, was the supremo in Aso Rock Villa. 

One is never surprised that he has urged the Super Eagles to go all out to ensure that the team brings the trophy home. That is the kind of tonic the team needed in time like this and nothing is good and great enough than what the former Number Three Citizen in the country did. 

His action, to say the very least, is timely and carries lots of weight. It shows how proactive he is. It further portrays how sports would fare if he bears the flag of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP} and goes ahead to become the President of the Federal Republic come 2023. 

He has shown quality leadership in the high offices he has held and, therefore, knows what it takes to govern a country like Nigeria. He understands the country’s diversity which has been her strength, peace and power until Buhari’s unfortunate, miserable dispensation.

Former Senate President, Anyim Pius Anyim, no doubt, is humble and humanist personified. Again, he did what the likes of the late Pillar of Sports in Africa, former President MKO Abiola did in those good old days. The late newspaper baron was an inspiration per excellence when it came to encouraging Eagles to perform optimally. 

We all knew, and those of us that were already on this beat, can readily attest what MKO did to our teams. His motivations and talking to, were tonics of winning before the actual victory. 

It was exactly what the former SGF, Anyim Pius Anyim, has actually done. We need such; and this first step towards the roundly abused and most killed in this Buhari/APC regime is in the right direction and has hit the target. In short, he has set the tone. Bravo as you continue with your nationwide consultations on which way Nigeria.   

Like the problem facing the entire country today occasioned  mainly by the misrule of Buhari Presidency and his All Progressive Congress since 2015 which has kept Nigeria and Nigerians in all facets presently leaving everything Nigeria in tatters. 

We discussed the on-going Africa Cup of Nations football showpiece in Cameroon. All the participating teams are on ground and we have seen how the results are turning out, including the current level of African football from this stage, compared to the last edition. 

To put it mildly, it is a gradual process to get there with the steady rise of African stars in their respective club sides across Europe and beyond, ours will continue to look up. 

Truth is that Nigeria’s Super Eagles team are in the thick of action in their Group G centre. Aside from the refusal of some clubs where some of the players invited for the tournament to release them which resulted in replacements here and there, the team, with her pedigree into the championship, we pray, will live up to our expectations as one of the pre-competition favourites. 

Also the initial lamentations by interim coach, Austin Eguavoen, on the lack of friendly games and when he took over the team now over, he has no alternative than to rise decisively to the billing and face squarely this national assignment placed on his shoulders and try as much as possible to come out clean. 

Though the game against the Pharaohs was a difficult one as usual, how one hopes for the best. The way and manner Nigeria do her things, this Nations Cup build up was no exception too. 

On the part of the NFF, it has risen to its billing after yet another initial noise of how much billions of Naira that it needed to prosecute the tournament successfully. Such assertions by Amaju Pinnick, to objective observers, were never necessary as such would not be a morale booster to the team but for whatever political reason that prompted him to voice out such, only he can explain.

Nothing, absolutely nothing, ought to warrant such outbursts. One prays that Egu will do well. He is one of the former Super Eagles players that can tell vividly the story of the team. We all knew when he was finally handed over the Eagles on interim basis. No need to panic or say things as if he is under pressure.

This Nations Cup will come and go. His preoccupation would be to motivate his lads that they can do it and adopt tight tactics that would not expose his team unnecessarily.

We continue to wish the Super Eagles the best in the football summit on-going in Cameroon.

Stay with www.dailyng.com for top Nations Cup news, results and sundry. Keep shooting till next week, as the struggle continues!!

Source Daily Sports

Posted January 17, 2022

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