How Minister Aborted Most Bold Grassroots Program

How Minister Aborted Most Bold Grassroots Program
Spread the love


On the eve of one other Olympic Video games, I invite the reader of this web page to hitch me and shed their very own tears.

Consider it or not, when Dr. Ebele Goodluck Jonathan , GCFR, was President of Nigeria, he permitted the institution of a federal authorities committee with the singular mandate to revive academicals sports activities within the nation. Meaning, sports activities on the grassroots, at secondary faculties stage – pure feeder to elite sports activities within the tertiary establishments, Native Governments, States and the nationwide sports activities councils and associations. 

The physique was referred to as “Nigeria Academicals Sports activities Committee”, NASCOM.  

The Honourable Minister of Youth and Sports activities on the time, inaugurated the committee whose membership included a number of stake holders on the secondary faculties sports activities stage throughout the nation. 

I imagine that my background as a product of college sports activities, proprietor of the nation’s first multi-sports, co-educational secondary faculty, Chairman of the Governing Council of the nation’s solely nationwide sports activities institute, and an energetic participant within the organisation of secondary faculty sports activities within the nation on the time, earned me the appointment of Chairman.  

Additionally Learn: Sport – Uniting The Black Race!  –Odegbami  

The President’s mandate was easy – arrange the equipment to revive participation in sports activities in each secondary faculty within the nation. For many members of the committee, notably people who have been instrumental to establishing it, their imaginative and prescient was small – to organise a nationwide soccer competitors for secondary faculties, title it after Mr. President and get all State governors to direct their ministries of sports activities and of training to take part, have grand finale in Abuja and get Mr. President to attend. 

It was good, however restricted within the scope of what might be achieved moreover with an growth of the imaginative and prescient. 

I noticed it as a chance to catalyze the largest grassroots sports activities improvement programme in Nigeria with a number of outcomes that can revolutionize sports activities, take its outcomes past academicals stage, affect nationwide youth engagement, youth empowerment, encourage enrollment into faculties (notably within the Boko Haram ravaged Nort East on the time), doc all Nigeria’s athletes, create a seamless transition from secondary to tertiary and to skilled ranges in sports activities, and so forth. 

After a number of months of consultations and conversations with the very best authorities within the nation amongst the stakeholders to be concerned on this venture, and a draft doc was scripted capturing the imaginative and prescient and all the main points of technique, funding, implementation, outcomes, a SWOT evaluation, and so forth, it was clear that the President’s easy and single mandate, escalated, turns into an thrilling journey into uncharted new territories in sports activities improvement that can change the lives of the youths for good.  

It was clear that for the venture to succeed there wanted to be a basic clear understanding by everybody concerned within the completely different components, with clear roles and duties, a wire connecting all of the shifting components within the complicated structure, and a seamless relationship up the ladder of the manufacturing line from grassroots to the elite {and professional} ranks of sports activities, areas that have been exterior the direct mandate of the Committee. 

The weakest a part of the venture was the absence of laws to provide it enamel and a everlasting life. The committee was ad-hoc at finest, to outlive on the whims of any new Minister. 

Additionally Learn: The Return Of The Flying Antelopes…  –Odegbami

‘Sadly’ I used to be by no means a small dreamer. I noticed past the superficial intentions. 

With me as pilot, following consultations and conferences, the committee got here up with a grasp plan for deployment to strategic establishments and organizations within the nation, with out whose buy-in and participation the venture wouldn’t take off from the tarmac. 

At completely different fora, I led the committee to satisfy with the Principals of all Federal Authorities Secondary Colleges within the nation; all State Ministries of Sports activities; all State Ministries of Schooling; Administrators of Sports activities of all State Sports activities Councils; all Native Governments Sports activities Councils; the Nigeria Governor’s Discussion board; all Principals of all private and non-private Secondary faculties in Nigeria; Administrators of Sports activities of Tertiary establishments in Nigeria underneath NUGA for the Universities, NiPOGA for the Polytechnics, and NACEGA for the Schools of Schooling; the committee of Vice-Chancellors of Universities; Heads of all navy faculties in Nigeria; the Administrators of Sports activities within the States training ministries;, the management of the Nigeria College Sports activities Federation, NSSF, which can be direct supervisors of academicals sports activities in Nigeria; and so forth. They have been all consulted, briefed and built-in into the grand plan that they readily embraced with reduction that the President was concerned! 

The plan was to doc all college students (and not directly, all college students) in all these establishments all in favour of collaborating in any a number of of various sports activities of their establishments. The documentation will embody their full names, dwelling deal with, date and fatherland, subsequent of kin, establishment, course of examine, class, sports activities, blood sort, biometrics, and every other info which may be discovered helpful for correct documentation. This information might be  universally out there and accessible to all of the establishments within the nation. 

In the meantime, every scholar athlete might be given a card (like an ATM card) that can serve a number of functions. This card might be supplied by a financial institution that companions with the Committee and homes all scholar sports activities levies and particulars from the over 180 Universities, 420 Polytechnics and a whole bunch Schools of Expertise, a whole bunch of Schools of Schooling, tens of hundreds of Secondary faculties, and so forth.  

Each establishment readily purchased into the grand scheme. Funding was going to be easy and straightforward.

Past advertising and marketing, sponsorships and partnerships, each scholar in tertiary establishments would pay an annual sports activities levy as they’ve paid to this point. 

Additionally Learn: Nigerian Football – A Slightly Different Perspective!  –Odegbami

In secondary faculties, levies used to exist till they have been canceled on account of abuse by faculty heads. With correct laws they have been to be revived and higher monitored. 

I depart everybody to work out the maths of the what these levies would quantity to when domiciled in a partnering financial institution. 

Let me inform you.

I approached just one financial institution with the proposal. The MD of one of many largest banks in Nigeria at present, listened to me in rapt consideration till I completed my presentation. 

His response stays etched in my thoughts until at the present time. 

He instructed me that day-after-day of his life as MD he obtained tons of proposals from organizations and other people, massive and small. 90 % of them, he stated, ended up in his dustbin. A small share attracted his consideration and he despatched these ones to accountable subordinates for consideration. However there have been a couple of that attracted his full consideration.  

Every time he encountered a type of ones, he knew immediately. The proposal I delivered to him was among the best he had ever obtained. It was a winner. His financial institution would companion with NASCOM to actualise it. And to exhibit the financial institution’s seriousness and dedication, he invited one in every of his administrators to hitch us, and instructed him to course of and ship one of many new automobiles the financial institution was utilizing for promotions to the secretariat of NASCOM in Abuja for the venture! 

Inside a couple of days, a committee of the financial institution had begun work.  The financial institution’s IT division created designs for the playing cards that have been to function nationwide scholar ID playing cards, Insurance coverage playing cards to cowl accidents and accidents throughout sports activities occasions, primary ATM playing cards, registers each sports activities individual throughout the venture from secondary to any tertiary establishment as part of a welfare scheme that sustains by means of their sports activities careers and past! 

It was a venture that was too good to be true, cruising alongside till near the London Olympic Video games in 2012. A brand new minister for Youth and Sports activities was appointed. By the point he was getting back from the Olympics, he had his personal concepts and initiatives. Unimpressed with NASCOM, one in every of his first strikes was to vary the management and to put in his alternative of members. The physique died a pure demise! 

In a single second of ‘ignorance’ with the stroke of a pen, he aborted a closely ‘pregnant’ venture, one of the vital formidable grassroots sports activities improvement applications in Nigeria sports activities historical past. 

 

 

 

 

Copyright © 2024 Completesports.com All rights reserved. The knowledge contained in Completesports.com is probably not revealed, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed with out the prior written authority of Completesports.com.





Source link

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *