New Sports Minister John Enoh is a farmer, so what? Ibrahim Bio is a pharmacist.
In a country where we most times chase the shadow; it is not surprising that sports stakeholders are more concerned with the new Sports Minister's professional background rather than the success he has made in his career and how he can replicate such in the sports industry Olukayode Thomas reports.
Introduction
Since John Owan Enoh was named the Minister of Sports Development, I have been inundated with calls by media colleagues requesting interviews on my opinion about the new minister.
A friend, who runs a sports NGO, even challenged me to write about the new minister.
Several friends from outside the commonwealth of sports journalism have also challenged me to write about the new head of sports who they think is a square peg in a round role.
My response to those that inundate me with calls has been that it's still very wrong to assume that Enoh's knowledge of the sports industry is low because he has never worked in the sports industry as a journalist, sportsman, member of a sports federation or association or in any other capacity.
Idowu Obasa, who I met through Dapo Olorunyomi, is a classic example of why it’s wrong to judge a book by its cover. Obasa’s knowledge of sports, either from an administrative or tactical angle is immense.
Yet he has never worked in the sports industry.
While years of experience in an industry one wants to work at the highest is valuable, but most times, the experience could be negative or positive.
In the sports industry, most of our experienced guys have disappointed us. Instead of getting the job done, they have made the industry worse.
Let facts speak.
Most Nigerians, especially members of the sports family and sports fans and supporters even the corporate bodies that sponsor sports in Nigeria agree that NFF is one the most badly run, if not the most badly run agency in Nigeria.
Surprisingly, most of the guys who have run, are still running football and have been members of the sports family for decades.
Since the beginning of this republic, apart from Anthony Kojo Williams and decent Ibrahim Galadima, most of the guys that have run our football since 1999 are carpetbaggers.
The current head Ibrahim Gusau has been a member of the sports family all his life and the scribe Mohammed Sanusi is not just a member of the sports family, he claims he has a Ph.D. in sports but his management skill is abysmally low, High School graduates have better result to show for management of men and resources than Sanusi.
The one before Gusau, Pinnick Amaju was head of football for many years in Delta State and later head of sports in the state; but he has nothing to show for it.
That Amaju's eight years as NFF president were the years of the locust in our football, is not in dispute.
The eras of Sanni Lulu and Aminu Maigari before Amaju was equally chaotic.
It’s not just a football problem, it’s a sports problem. Be it the Sports Ministry itself, the NOC, the sports federations and associations, and even at the State and Local Government levels.
Outside the Sports Industry, it’s the same story. Doctors and health professionals have been in charge of the Health Ministry for ages, has anything changed despite billions of Naira investment in the industry?
Ditto the Ministry of Justice, with lawyers who are SAN, engineers at the Ministry of Works have not made any difference. So, what is the problem? The challenge we have since independence is a lack of many men and women with genuine intentions and positive madness to move sports and other industries forward.
If Enoh has the two, (genuine intentions and positive madness) he will lay the foundation for the growth and development of sports, especially since he has in Bola Ahmed Tinubu a President who wants to invest heavily in sports and entertainment.
Bio and Abdullah's pragmatic leadership as an example
Ibrahim Isah Bio like Enoh was an unknown face in the sports family when he was appointed Sports Minister in 2010.
But Bio's brief tenure was so impactful that when he resigned many were begging him to come back.
Bio’s disdain for business-as-usual attitude endears him to many in the sports industry.
Bio started football reform with an emphasis on the revival of the league. He prevented the NFF from disgracing the country at the South Africa 2010 FIFA World Cup by canceling the roadside motel they hired for the Super Eagles and getting the team a befitting hotel.
Bio’s reasonable leadership prevented a plane crash that would have led to the death of a generation of Super Eagles players. During his brief but eventful tenure, he touched on fundamental issues that affect sports like athletics, basketball, special sports, tennis, and others.
He also led Team Nigeria to a successful outing at the New Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games.
Bolaji Abdullah like Bio was equally not a member of the sports family when he was appointed Sports Minister.
Though his tenure, like Bio before him was short, it was filled with achievements.
They include but are not limited to starting the Youth Games, a bi-annual game to discover talents at the grassroots and give them elite athlete training at younger ages as it is the norm in successful sports nations.
Abdullah also established High-Performance Center, a first in the country, staffed by experts in different sports.
Under him, we not only won the Africa Nations Cup in South Africa but also won the U-17 World Cup in the United Emirates.
Home-based Super Eagles qualified for the African Nations Championship, CHAN, for the first time and won the bronze medal at the event.
Under his brief tenure, Team Nigeria's athletics team was the African champion at the youth, junior, and senior levels.
Athletes ruling the world today like Tobi Amusan and Ese Brume were discovered under Abdullah.
He also revived our league by establishing the League Management Company (LMC) and signed a broadcast rights agreement with Super Sports worth 4 million USD.
Team Nigeria's male basketball team, D’Tigers, qualified to represent Nigeria at the Olympic Games for the first time in 2012 thanks to Abdullah’s support for the team.
On the international scene Primo Nebiolo, the man who changed athletics from medal, certificate, and handshake sports to a multi-million-dollar business never ran, he was an Italian lawyer and engineer.
Greg Dyke, one of the men that changed English football from kick and follow to one of the biggest brands in the world today is a reporter.
Agenda for Enoh
If I were Enoh, I won’t be intimidated by people calling my appointment a square peg in a round hole rather I will see it as a challenge, an opportunity to empower millions of our youth.
With genuine intentions and pragmatic leadership, Enoh can use sports to solve several socio-economic problems and build a vibrant sports industry in Nigeria.
He can also move our sports industry from one that just participates in major games and championships to one that places emphasis on sports development at all levels.
Enoh should have at the back of his mind that education, entertainment, and sports are the most important tools for getting our youth out of poverty.
Of the three, sports is the most amenable because of their easy access.
He needs to know that states with an average economy, whose citizens are passionate about sports have used sports for decades to achieve youth empowerment and engagement, combat crime, prevent substance abuse and other anti-social behaviours, raise national and global icons, leave a legacy, generate revenue, and boost industries like tourism.
Under Enoh, Nigeria must emulate America, Asia, Latin America, and European countries who want to succeed at the FIFA World Cup, Olympic Games, and other Games and championships. But beyond winning medals and trophies, they use Sports to cure many economic and social ills.
Imagine America without Basketball, American Football, Soccer, Boxing, Tennis, Ice Hockey, and other sports that have turned many youths from less privileged backgrounds into global icons.
Enoh must also prioritize a seamless marriage between sports and education from the primary to tertiary level.
The United States of America is the most successful sports country in the world today because of the strong marriage between education and sports from primary to tertiary level.
The top five Olympic Games medal-winning universities in the United States are the University of South California (309 medals) Stanford University (307 medals) University of California Los Angeles (254 medals) University of California (207 medals) and the University of Michigan (144 medals.) have won more medals than the whole of Africa. (Pre-Tokyo Olympic Games data)
Rather than being intimidated Enoh should see his posting to sports as a challenge and use the opportunity to lay the foundation for the growth and development of sports in Nigeria.
PULL QUOTE: While years of experience in an industry one wants to work at the highest is valuable but most times, the experience could be negative or positive.
PULL QUOTE: If I were Enoh, I won’t be intimidated by people calling my appointment a square peg in a round hole rather I will see it as a challenge, an opportunity to empower millions of our youth.
