Adekunle Salami 
A former Super Eagles international and 1980 Nations Cup gold medallist, Dr. Felix Owolabi, has charged President Bola Tinubu to give sports a place of pride by making the sector to be among those to drive the country’s economy. He noted that sports has gone beyond just participation and competitions as it is the driving force for the economy of most countries in the world today. “The sector can guarantee that youths are properly engaged facilities while facilities are provided as well as job creation. This new administration of Chief Bola Ahmed Tinubu must rise up to the occasion to give sports its deserved place of pride.
The sports sector can in one year create more than a million jobs and many youths will be kept off the streets,” he said. Owolabi added that President Tinubu should bring back the National Sport Commission (NSC) as an arm under the ministry of sports. In an exclusive interview with our correspondent on the agenda for the new President said it was important for tech- nocrats in the sector to be in the ministry. He said: “We should have more profes – sionals. More former athletes, sound coaches and experienced administrators in the NSC to work with the new minister and chat a new direction to boost our sports and our talented athletes.
“The talents have never been a problem to us. The issue has been how to identify these athletes and groom them to the next level. There are no plans on the ground to make development easy in sports.” The former Shooting Stars player said sports it was important for the new administration to adopt a sports policy as template to run sports in the country while youths, talents and fa- cilities development should be major priorities as well. Owolabi added: “I know quite well that about 75% of world popu- lation is youths. And that is why many countries of the world are doing all they can to engage the youth. A n d so they so much believe that sports can play that vital role.
“Past administrations have come and gone without rolling out any agenda for sports development. And so when sports ministers are chosen, they occupy such seat using their own initiatives. What they do and rely too much on is engaging in competitions and not how to develop sports. For that reason it is either you win or lose. “I implore the Presi- dent to set a new agenda for sports for this country. We have amazing talents on the streets of Onitsha, Wukari, Maiduguri, Katsina Dutsin-ma, Eruwa, Onitsha, Surulere, Sango Ota, Ugheli Asaba, Kano, etc. All we need is a robust sports policy. “Some facilities which were the pride of this country are today in comatose. And this has caused the dwindling fortunes in various sports. It is time now that this new adminis- tration should review our sports and give it the leverage it deserves. “A ministry of sports cannot singlehandedly serve the purpose of our sports, rather, what the nation needs most is the establishment or rather the return of National Sports Commission where you parade tech- nocrats of high standards who have seen it all in sports as team players and management.” The former international stressed that the return of the NSC but be done as fast as possible to better the lots of Nigerian athletes. “It must be done with upmost sin- cerity and the NLC return must be backed by a legislation,” he added.
