Richard Ginika Izuora
The Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA Resource Centre), a leading anti-corruption organisation and “PLAY!YA Nigeria”, a Lagos-based sports-focused Non-Governmental Organisation have called on sports journalists to shine the spotlight on corruption in Nigeria’s sports sector, saying: “corruption is the major factor responsible for underdevelopment and crippling of sports and youth development in Nigeria.”
In a statement issued in Abuja on Tuesday, March 10, 2020 at the opening of a two-day training for sports journalists and jointly signed by Mr Olanrewaju Suraju, Chairman of HEDA Resource Centre and Mr Eze Alloysius, Executive Director of PLAY!YA Nigeria, the organisations observed that the current situation where the media concentrate on sports statistics or spectacular goals as in the in the case of Professional Football League for instance, without bothering much about investigating and exposing the ills within the sport system is worrisome.
“Doping or match fixing, sexual harassment as well as non-payment of allowances to athletes and players, among other forms of corruption, are major issues impeding sports development in the country; these should be issues of major concern to the Nigerian media”, they said.
According to Mr Suraju, the organisations convened the event titled: “Tackling corruption and under-development of sports in Nigeria: investigative reporting for the common good and sport development” and brought together over 30 sports journalists from across the country with support of the “Upright for Nigeria” and UKaid to train reporters with a view to setting the pace for investigative reporting to expose the corruption in the sector and engender sports and youth development in the country.
In his opening remark, Mr Alloysius noted that; “The grassroots athletes and players are worst hit by the corruption and maladministration in sports. Many grassroots teams are without any facility for practice and qualified coaches to train them. Government subventions, royalties, sponsorship deals, adverts among other monies accruable to the sport federations are in most cases diverted, spent or squandered through the elite teams without recourse to grassroots development.
“Equally worrisome is the mad rush for foreign athletes and players as if there were no young people in the country who are engaged in sports. It must be recalled that in the 1980s and 1990s, virtually all Nigeria’s major athletes and players were groomed within the country before leaving to further their career abroad when necessary. But nowadays, the reverse is the case: We have federation presidents going to foreign countries to beg prominent athletes and players with dual citizenship to come and represent Nigeria in major competitions.” He added: “the ‘appropriation’ of Anthony Joshua to be a Nigerian after a successful career in boxing abroad is a good example.”
Mr Alloysius posited that the passion for sports have swayed many away from other issues affecting sports including corruption and maladministration, thus making it easy for sports officials and the representatives of sports federations to get away with the corruption.
Urging the sports journalists to act accordingly, participants said: “In all these malfeasance, the only genuine and responsible body everyone looks up to for intelligence, scoop and information is the press! The role of sports journalists in investigating and reporting cases of corruption and maladministration in sports governance cannot be overemphasised. However, the Nigeria media is lagging behind in discharging this onerous duty to the public. Therefore, this training should be a wake up call.”
While delivering his goodwill message, Mr Okeke Patrick, Deputy Director of grassroots sports development at the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development, urged journalists to be courageous and work with the HEDA and PLAY!YA to investigate as well as rid the Nigerian sports sector of corruption, noting that: “Nigeria has lost its past glory in sports to corruption.”
Mr Kayode Thomas who presented a paper titled, “the corruption situation in Nigeria and its effect on the sports sector”, noted that “The media is the pillar on which sports rests today, apart from multi-billion-dollar television deals without which sports will revert to what it was decades ago, a mere recreational exercise with just medals as rewards. Media scrutiny ensures sanity and discipline in the industry and ensures the sustainability of the sector through reports.”
He highlighted match-fixing, illegal betting, insider information, bad governance, conflicts of interests, use of clubs as shell companies, doping, fraud, bribery and nepotism as the major corruption issues in the Nigeria sports sectors citing various examples, all of which kill sports. He therefore urged that: Media owners should support their reporters and encourage them to produce good investigative stories. Stating further, he said that there should be holistic grooming of new generation of newsroom leaders.
He added: “There should be effective collaboration between the media, civil society organisations and the anti-graft agencies to cure the sports system of corruption. The media should also make radical efforts to rid itself of corruption.” He concluded quoting Naomi Klein that: “Journalists make choices at key moments in history, they aren’t mere spectators.”
Godwin Enakhena, former Chairman of MFM Football Club who also made presentation at the event, titled: “Media reporting on sports development in Nigeria; Favouring corruption or working for the common good?” observed that: “We can all feel and see the corruption in sports, but we still need to proof it.” Therefore, he commended HEDA and PLAY!YA for putting together the training and urged journalists to rise to the occasion in ways that transcends the hypocrisy in the sports journalism sector.