By Ozioruva Aliu
WIFE of the governor of Edo State, Mrs Betsy Obaseki has said that Edo State has dropped from number one trafficking state in Nigeria to number five because of the various advocacy strategies the administration of her husband has embarked on since 2016 when he became governor of the state.
Mrs Obaseki stated this during the draws to mark the maiden edition of Betsy Obaseki Women Football Competition identifying sports as one of the areas the state government has engaged young people in the state.
She said if Edo state is able to get it right, Nigeria will get right and that was the focus of the administration of her husband fully supported by his deputy, Comrade Philip Shaibu.
She said: “Those who identified Edo State as the heartbeat of Nigeria know the very reasons for that and they are very correct. I believe with the position we are in this country, if Edo gets it right, Nigeria will get it right.
“We have young people who are very active and those contributed to Edo state at a point assuming the number one position of human trafficking in Nigeria, but we are now number five, that means we have done five full circles of reversal of the trend. Nigeria needs Edo to be well.
“Because of the negatives of human trafficking, we decided that there was need to engage our young ones, to move our children happy and discourage them from the tortuous journey so this competition is one of those means.”
She said the tournament is purely private sector driven and would outlive the current administration.
On her part, a former player of the Super Falcons, Nkiru Okosieme tasked women footballers in the country to show more commitment, discipline and passion for the sport while commending Mrs Obaseki, the organiser of the tournament, for providing the platform that would further enhance the growth of women football in the country.
“I must commend the first lady of Edo, Betsy Obaseki, for laying another foundation for the growth of women football in the country.
“The participating teams in this tournament have no excuse not to perform because the enabling environment has been created for them here in Edo.”
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