Oshiomhole’s govt pays little attention to sports devt – Ebewele
By IME BASSEY
The Nigeria versus Botswana friendly match which took place at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium on November 12, 2011 was to mark Edo State Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole’s third years in office.
Former Commissioner of sports in the state during Chief Lucky Igbinedion’s tenure, Brown Ebewele has stated that attention has not been paid to sports development in the state.
Assessing Oshiomhole’s three years of sports development in a telephone interview with Sunday Vanguard Sports, Ebewele said that little has been done except for international matches at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium.
“Oshiomhole has done well depending on how you look at it. For instance, he has attracted so many international matches to the Samuel Ogbemodia Stadium which has not been seen in a long while. This I believe is a credit on his side, take it or leave it.
“On the flip side, his government has not really held sway with the sports council which is supposed to be the engine room of sports development. For sports to grow, you must plunged into the grassroots and this can only be done when there is mobility which you can’t find in the sports council except for one bus that has just been given now. Sports can’t grow with this approach.
“We know Edo State to be a sport loving state with numerous talents spread across the various 18 local governments areas but when the funds are not flowing the way it ought to be, the civil servants won’t spend their money on these raw talents. Also the state dropped from its regular first or second position in the National Sports Festival to third at this year’s event held in Port Harcourt
Asked if he feels the present commissioner of sports in the State is not doing her job appropriately, the former national decathlon champion said, “when people say the commissioner is not doing well, I keep telling them that she was never a sports woman and there is no way she can take charge of what she knows nothing about. That is why I said the sports council should come in.
“I am saying that the Commissioner is not properly briefed by the sports council on issues concerning sports development in the state, so it would be very hard for her to meet with the Governor and be able to boldly tell him what is obtainable when she does not know it in depth.
“The comrade is somebody I know well and I think for sports to thrive in Edo State, those in the sports council and the commissioner should work cohesively to push him (Oshiomhole) so sports will move in the state once again.
“If the sports council is not alive especially when the commissioner is not a sports person, there will not be any sports development. When I was a sports director, I used to be called upon by the governor to react to sports issues.
On the issue of Bendel Insurance, the former director of sports in the state said, “I believe in integrity, for the state to get anything done properly in the club, they need to draft persons with proven character and integrity like Shaibu Amodu and others. “These persons are persons whom the Comrade believes are working for him, so it would be easy for him to listen to them, release money and they themselves using their contact to bring sponsors to the club. And in turn, the club will get promotion easily and the future would change. Oshiomhole is an exciting person that likes swiftness in job delivery, so it will be very difficult to work him.
