Minister of Youth and Sports Development Sunday Dare said that the Federal government will no longer sit back and watch as sports infrastructures across Nigeria lay in waste due to neglect.

The minister made this known as he inaugurated a Ministerial Task Force saddled with the responsibility of the rehabilitation of the National Stadium, Surulere.

The task force, which has three weeks to complete its assignment, will screen tenancy documents and verify legal and illegal structures within the National stadium, which has suffered over a decade of near total neglect and is made up of 13 members drawn from the Ministry and the organized private sector and with the full compliments security agencies with the Permanent Secretary Gabriel Aduda as its head.

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“The National Stadium, Lagos holds a lot of fond memories for our Sportsmen and sportswomen and indeed millions of Nigerians,” the Minister said. “Government shall no longer allow our sporting infrastructure to lie waste.

President Buhari is committed to completing abandoned infrastructure and also maintaining the ones that have deteriorated.

The Moshood Abiola, Ahmadu Bello, Obafemi Awolowo National stadiums shall be restored and made available to serve our athletes.”

The minister also added that Private-Public Partnership (PPP) and concession deals for the stadiums have been approved and the processes will be fast tracked but sanity has to be restored before it takes place.