Sports enthusiasts on Monday in Lagos said that the development of sports in the country was being impeded by internal wrangling among sports authorities.
According to fans, efforts to develop sports in Nigeria might be a mirage if internal wrangling remained the order of the day.
Olisa Egwuatu, a board member and Technical Director, Nigerian Cricket Federation (NCF), said that sportsmen had lost their bearing since fans engaged in fights than proffering solutions to pertinent challenges.
According to him, Nigerian athletes are known for setting the pace with giant strides, but that is all gone because unity is farfetched.
“We just don’t seem to fully agree on one direction. It has been the greatest challenge of all times, but we have decided to pay less attention to it by putting blame on other vices when the centre is most important.
“Politics on the side of sports administrators, players and school board, who are leaders at their various levels, have shown unwillingness to come together on a common front to work.
“When we deal with strife, trust me, all other minor problems like funding won’t be seen as an issue anymore.
“Let’s put our acts together and have one goal, then we will come to terms with the fact that other challenges are very little to deal with,’’ Egwuatu said.
Kayode Adeniyi, Chairman, Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN), Abuja Chapter, said that having a common goal was important for stakeholders to correct the already existing wrongs in sports.
He said that sporting activities in Western climes were given priority and as such, unity was inevitable among their administrators.
“The major setbacks we have suffered today in sports have been administrative. We focus more energy on fighting for positions when a lot more is at stake.
“The inventors of these games do not trade disunity for medals because they know that there is great strength in unity and we must copy them rightly,’’ he said.
