By Kate Obodo
Former Cycling Federation President Rev. Moses Iloh has said  the  only way cycling can be like other sports is if the  federal government  invests much  on it just as it is doing for football.

The former National Publicity Secretary of the Christian Association of Nigeria, said  investing in the sport will do a lot of good for the country especially  the youths in the aspect of employment as well as reducing  crime in the country.

“We have been developing cycling but the people who are there are not interested, because the sports commissioner has not been  supportive to  us when we were there. How can we have such a fantastic edifice and it is lying fallow.

Rev. Iloh

But I heard now that the cycling  people are making up a little bit. I have been quite critical of the whole thing and I’m passed 81 years old,  what am I looking  for? May be chairman of cycling. I have a cycling club, we represented Lagos state at the last four festivals, at no cost because the governor is a good man and it is expensive running the club, hoping that  I can get people who can take over club.

I can not continue, I’m a pastor not a business man but I am just doing it because I want to maintain the impetus of the sports. Not every youth is supposed to play football but everything  now is football. Football has  money yes, but boxing, cycling and other sports also can fetch money.

And you see, I have a philosophy that money means time, and  talent, time is free, so if you put it together, no youth will be poor especially having over  40 million youths  unemployed and poor youth in the country doing nothing.  I just pray to God that somebody that understands, that can listen and come down from the high horse and be the president of Nigeria one day, not arrogant fellows, so we can meet him and talk sports.

Though we have people who are so high there, we have sports commissioners  who have blocked  every thing, they do not even hear nor  listen.

“I’m going to talk to Babatunde Fashola as soon as he  settles down. All we need to do is that every local government, should have a sporting facility on their own choice. If a local government is interested in Lawn Tennis, it should be able to have a first class Lawn Tennis facility.

The one that has boxing, table tennis should be able to have facility . Every local government should be able to have a sporting facility. And then the  local government should employ a coach for that particular sport and employ  one or  two cleaners. You know we have 774  local governments in Nigeria, and you can give jobs to 774 coaches in Nigeria. Then each of the facilities should have four cleaners.

Then when our youths come there they should be able to pay little money and  show what to do. If  it is football they have a coach there, by so doing talents will emerge, but now they are being neglected. The states, local governments and the federal government should do the same thing.

I do not think I like the idea of having a  ministry of sports, no. I would rather prefer we have a sports authority or minister of sports authority. His  work is to make sure all the facilities are working  so that there will be facilities to train with .

If this is done, you find out that the youths will be busy and then all the big business men  will come. A boy who goes home at the end of the competition with N500 will be happy.

This will help fight crime, unemployment, poverty. I hope the cycling sport will come alive again if all these are put in order. I like cycling but not to be fully involved.

Despite that I am not in charge,  it still has people in charge but I heard it is now concessioned, which   is  an insult!  Cycling is one of the early Olympic games. The best way is to get people that are interested, government will buy about 40 bicycles but in the time being, buy some bicycles that are not too expensive and let the cyclists be paying for  them at a hirer purchase, help them to get a job in the Breweries or  any where.

As they are working and  cycling, they can even do messenger’s job for their companies on bicycle but gradually there are paying for the sport bicycle. We are looking at a situation where cyclists will be looked after and the committee will help to attract people and assemble bicycle in Nigeria.

My idea of government coming in is to establish and invest in cycling and not to control it for the interest of the youth. That is why I like the Philosophy that said ‘Youth development programme through sports’ so when they come in they should be able to put in billions in the sport so that the youths will know that the money is there to  develop them.

With this they have equipment, coaches and also travel out for International competitions. That is my idea of government involvement in cycling,” he said.