By Okey Ndiribe
ABUJA — The new Minister of Sports Alhaji Yusuf Suleiman has pledged to find a permanent solution to the crisis currently pervading Nigerian Football. He made this pledge in Abuja yesterday during his maiden press briefing.

He further stated that efforts would be made towards inviting the major stakeholders to find a permanent solution to the crisis that has befallen the nation’s football house.

He observed that peace was necessary in order to prepare the football house to handle the national teams for successful outing in major international competitions adding that this would no doubt engender rapid progress and provide the much needed conducive atmosphere for the development of the game of soccer in Nigeria.

Commenting on the nation’s preparations for the 10th All Africa Games scheduled to take place in Mozambique, he stated that athletes in selected 19 sports events were already in training camps to  prepare for the games, adding that  the goal of the National Sports Commission was that Nigeria must finish among the top three nations at the forth-coming games.

He also noted that the Commission would work hard to ensure that Nigeria qualifies for the Football event of the London 2012 Olympics, adding that his administration’s target was to ensure that Nigeria records the best performance in Africa.

According to him: “ Nigeria would be taking part in the following sporting events at the Olympics: Athletics, female boxing, weightlifting, wrestling, taekwondo, Paralympics sports and power lifting.

Alhaji Suleiman stated that the training of the athletes in camp would be part of the training for the All Africa games.
Commenting on the Under-20 National team which is currently training in Portugal, he said the team would later head to Panama for a four-nation tourney and thereafter proceed to Columbia for the FIFA U-20 World Cup tournament.

He further stated that the ground-breaking ceremony for the erection of a new corporate headquarters for Nigerian Football would be held before the end of September.

The Sports Minister further said that a retreat would soon be organized by the Commission to sensitise its staff of the Transformation Agenda of President Goodluck Jonathan.

He also stated that in order to implement the grassroots Sports Development Programme of the Commission, the Federal Government plans to partner with the state governments to provide community sports centres across the country adding that the Federal Government had already provided take-off grants for some of these projects.

The Sports Minister said that part of the Commission’s programme would involve encouraging the private sector to show interest in sporting development through the provision of sporting equipment in the local communities nation-wide.

He further indicated the readiness of his administration to ensure review the management structure of the National sporting federations recalling that some of them were concessioned sometime ago to attract alternative source of funding for sports through private sector partnership.