By Chris Okechukwu Obiakor, Owerri on November 19, 2022

As football stakeholdersall over Nigeria  have continued to pour encomiums on Imo State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodinma, for the appointment of Ambassador (Sir) Eleazar Onyewuchi Ogbonna as the Chairman of Imo State Sports Commission, the man at the centre of the fanfare, Ambassador Ogbonna, has swung into action.

While plaudits are pouring Governor Uzodinma’s way for hitting the bull’s eye; while Ambassador Ogbonna’s friends and associates are wining and dining,  the South East and YSFON Sports Ambassador has  already set up an agenda on how to turn things around - for the better - for Imo State Sports.

Few days after the appointment, Ogbonna left the shores of Nigeria to put heads together with his foreign partners to ensure that a partnership that will revatalise Imo Sports is put in motion. Apart from his foreign partners, Ogbonna is drawing up a list of experts from across Nigeria who will come together to produce a blueprint for the repositioning of Imo Sports.

THE MAN, HON.(SIR) PRINCE ELEAZAR ONYEWUCHI OGBONNA
Hon. (Sir) Prince Eleazar Onyewuchi Ogbonna needs no introduction. For
an ex professional footballer who has played in top leagues at home
and abroad, Prince Ogbonna has made his mark in every field of
endeavour he has ventured into.
First things first. Coming from a very humble background, and  growing
up in a very decent environment - in a family where the Anglican
doctrine was followed to the letter - Prince Ogbonna rode through
turbulent times to emerge as a devoted and committed entrepreneur.
As the Imo State Sport Ambassador and South East YSFON Sport
Ambassador  of Nigeria, Prince Ogbonna has identified with
professionalism and has made giant strides in the areas of  sport
development and mobilisation of the youth.
As somebody whose success story became feasible through professional
football, Prince Ogbonna did not forget where he was coming from. As a
result, he set up a football academy through which talented African
footballers are scouted, nurtured and exposed to big clubs in Europe,
America and other parts of the world. His pet project, Talent Hunt
Soccer Academy,   is an enterprise meant to promote, grassroots
football in Nigeria as well as Africa. It is a grassroots-to-fame
initiative which focuses on engaging, enhancing and empowering the
budding Nigerian/African footballers and preparing them for lucrative
professional football career.
 Aside investing in grassroots development, Prince Ogbonna has spread
his tentacles to other business ventures. Apart from operating a
school, Envid International School, and its subsidiary in Accra,
Ghana,   which comprises of nursery, primary and secondary schools -
with affordable fees - he has a foundation, Prince Ogbonna Development
Foundation, which takes care of widows, orphans, cancer patients, and
the less-privileged as a whole. For details of the foundation's
laudable initiatives, visit: www.podefng.org.
For the Obinze-born ex professional footballer, touching the lives of
people through social responsibility is a priority. While setting up a
Nigerian company,  Prince Onyewuchi Investment Ltd, he had the
employment of thousands of Nigerians at the back of his mind.   His
company in Italy: Prince Investment Di Ogbonna Prince Eleazar
Onyewuchi and another company in England: Ogbonna Onyewuchi Investment
Limited, have a large contingent of Nigerian and foreign workers as
well.  He also publishes two newspapers called Sports Ambassador and News Ambassador
two outlets  that also have thousands of Nigerians and foreigners
under their payroll.

Ambassador  Ogbonna, whose moral credentials have been recognised by the Anglican Church (he is a knight of the Anglican Communion) is also a member of international
Anti Corruption Assembly in Europe. He is married with five children.

IMO SPORTS COMMISION BOSS

Few days after the appointment of Ambassador (Prince) Eleazar Onyewuchi Ogbonna as the Imo State Sports Commission Chairman by Governor Hope Uzodinma, Ambassador Ogbonna has hit the ground running.

Besides sending a delegation of football stakeholders to Asaba, Delta State, to empathize with ailing former Green Eagles of Nigeria captain, Henry Nwosu, Ogbonna has set up a think tank whose responsibility is to provide fire-brand policies and strategies that will change the face of Imo State Sports.

Ambassador Ogbonna means many things to many people. To many, he’s an ex-footballer of great repute. To some, he’s a philanthropist. To others, he’s an astute businessman.

To the Governor of Imo State, Sen. Uzodinma, Ogbonna is a pro-active, success-driven entrepreneur, who is endowed with sterling qualities that are vital in moving Imo State to sublime heights.

Having followed closely Ogbonna’s pious antecedents since he came to power, Uzodinma did not hesitate in bringing  (on board) the Owerri West-born ex-footballer to help in sanitizing sports in Imo State.

Coming at a period football (the most revered sporting event in the world) had descended to its lowest ebb in the Heartland State, Uzodinma’s bold step could not have come at a better time.

The height of decadence in Imo Sports came with the relegation of Heartland Football Club of Owerri - one of the most respected and revered football clubs in Africa.

 Undoubtedly, the relegation came with sorrow, gnashing of teeth and ‘darkness’.

Having been following events in Imo Sports circles over the decades, Ogbonna knows the right buttons to press. Having been a very successful business man over the years, Ogbonna has the wherewithal to reposition sports without relying on government grants. 

“My foremost priority is the removal of poverty (of the mind), mediocrity, sentiments and desperation in Imo State Sports,” Ambassador Ogbonna stated.

“My target is simply to ensure that of all social welfare programmes (re Imo Sports) must be implemented efficiently. Agencies involved in the delivery of services should have a strong sense of duty and work in a transparent, corruption-free, time-bound and accountable manner as funds will not be an issue.”

To many people, politics is a dirty game. But to
Prince Ogbonna, politics is a means through which he can touch the
lives of millions of Nigerians who are yearning for justice, fair play
and good conscience. That explained why he emerged as one of the
prominent gubernatorial candidates in Imo State during the last party
primaries for the 2019 gubernatorial elections.  Prince Ogbonna, whose
moral credentials have been recognized by the Anglican Church (he is a
knight of the Anglican Communion) is also a member of international
Anti Corruption Assembly in Europe. He is married with five children.

Source Daily Sports Nigeria

Posted November 18, 2022

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