By Monday Ajogun
The Edo Deputy Governor, Philip Shaibu,has urged the private sector in Nigeria to take over the sponsorship of sports in the country.
Shaibu, while declaring open the Nigeria Women Football League (NWFL) 2020 Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Benin said government cannot continue doing it alone.
“The private sector must come and drive sports in Nigeria. It must come and advertise products through sports. Our sports needs urgent attention to compete with the leagues in Europe, as well as in athletics.
“For us in Edo, we are ready to collaborate with the private sector so as to move sports activities to a greater height.
“Government alone cannot run sports. Government alone cannot do it, we need the private sector to help drive our sports economy,” he said.
The Edo deputy governor noted that football would keep the young ones in the country busy.
“It is being used to preach against their wanting to go abroad and be used as women traffickers and for other social vices in our society,” he said.
Speaking also, the Chairperson of NWFL, Aisha Falode, thanked Gov. Godwin Obaseki of Edo and Shaibu for their open demonstration of love for women football in Nigeria.
Falode said the state-owned Edo Queens Football Club is the only club known in Nigeria and Africa where the players earn the same pay as their male counterparts (in Bendel Insurance FC).
She called on other clubs to emulate this step taken by Edo Government.
Falode also urged the Edo government to help the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) in celebrating 30 years of women football in Nigeria and by extension Africa.
In a goodwill message, Emmanuel Ibah, the representatives of the NFF leadership at the event, lauded the Edo Government for its contributions toward sports in the country.
Ibah commended Gov. Obaseki for the massive reconstruction work of the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin.
He appealed for proper funding of the national female league, noting that good sponsors would make the women league a robust one in Africa.(NAN)