Football Stakeholders Condemn Dalung Over Denial of Siasia's Team
The recent statement by the Minister of Sports and Youth Development that officials of the national U-23 football team are engaged in human trafficking because he was not briefed before the team set out on the trip to the United States has drawn the ire of some football stakeholders.
A national official of the Nigerian Football Supporters Club told Sports Vanguard that the minister, Barrister Solomon Dalung's statement, if truly he said it, has not only embarrassed the country before the international community but put a question mark on the integrity of the entire coaching staff.
"I was shocked to read that the minister said the U-23 officials were involved in human trafficking. How could he have said that for God's sake?. That statement has not only embarrassed us as a country but has ridiculed the players and put a question mark on the coaches," he said.
He stressed that for a minister whose responsibility it was to provide the enabling environment for athletes representing the country to train and excel in competitions to turn around to deny them smacks of the highest irresponsibility.
"From his actions so far since he assumed office, the sports minister has shown he knows nothing about the dynamics of sports and is not ready to learn either. If he knows the terrain is strange to him and therefore cannot handle it, he should ask the president to redeploy him or better still, resign honourably instead of embarrassing the country everyday," the stakeholder, who pleaded anonymity, said. Another stakeholder and the Sports Editor of the New Telegraph newspaper, Adekunle Salami described the minister's statement as not only absurd but equally reckless.
Stressing that "The Nigeria Football Federation, even despite its internal issues, went as far as sending the U-23 team on tour and rather than commend the football body, the minister publicly condemned the federation."
Salami concluded by saying that "Dalung should simply resign or tell Mr President to assign him to another ministry. He is not worthy of leading Team Nigeria to Rio Olympics. He knows nothing and he is not ready to learn. It is a SHAME."
Comments
This article has 0 comment(s) , give your comment