The success of any venture, be it skyscraper building construction; development programmes, projects, or even a society is largely dependent on the foundation laid by the vision bearer and his team of experts devoid of mediocrity.
It requires a lot of sacrifices, courage, commitment, sincerity of purpose and patriotism for the team leaders to succeed amid political challenges.
This can be said of the new Edo state with Governor Obaseki as the vision bearer and pragmatic team leader with a clear sense of direction; sincerity of purpose, commitment, loyalty, and doggedness in tackling issues that have lifted the state in virtually all sectors
On assumption of office in 2016, Governor Obaseki made plans and programme of his administration very clear. It is an administrative programme carefully designed to address issues of decadence, deprivation, maladministration, the fast eroding culture of hard work, and a poor reward system with its attendant consequences on citizens’ sense of patriotism among other sundry issues to Make Edo Great Again.
In the Edo State sports sector, there are many good stories to tell about the successes of Governor Godwin Nogheghase Obaseki’s administration since its inception in 2016.
Known for his clearheadedness and purposefulness; a man who does not believe in building on a wrong foundation, he started the foundation of new Edo as a sports destination in Nigeria and beyond by setting up a team of experts headed by a renowned sports administrator and former Captain of glorious Green Eagles of Nigeria who won the 1980 Africa Cup of Nations for Nigeria Dr Shegun Odegbami to organize a Sports Summit which brought the who-is-who in sports together in Benin to faction out a roadmap for sustainable sports development in Edo state.
The mandate for the Mathematical Odegbami’s committee was to examine Edo Youth and the Sports subsector of the economy; the history, population; and record of achievement in the past that made it Bendel Number 1, the issues affecting the process of growth and development of the sector with a view to finding solution.
The committee did not disappoint, and neither did the Obaseki administration. Soon after the committee was done with its job; and a white paper issued, Governor Obaseki hit the ground running by putting his hands on the plough without entertaining any distractions.
Knowing the importance of modern sports infrastructure and facilities as major catalysts for sports for stimulating citizen’s enthusiasm and participation in sports activities which has given Edo athletes some comparative advantage, Governor Obaseki began the process of revolutionizing the state sports sector by deliberately investing huge resources in the reconstruction and remodeling of the famous Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium. Putting the round pegs in the round holes, the Obaseki team succeeded in changing the narratives by re-inventing the AESTHETICS of the stadium both in terms of facilities and modern infrastructure thus making it the new bride of national sports federations, particularly the Athletic Federation, Handball and Basketball etc.
The state at the moment can boast of the best Gymnasium which the world gymnastics body has rated best in West Africa. The gymnastics facility is being appreciated by Edo athletes and, national and international ones who have always chosen Benin City as their choice venue to host events of the highest level.
The Tartan tracks for athletics are second to none and endearing. The Athletic Federation of Nigeria has again made Edo their host for this year’s National and African qualifications meet.
The Samuel Ogbemudia stadium is not standing alone in the magical touch of Governor Obaseki’s administration as other sports facilities across the eighteen local government areas got the state government’s attention. Among them are the Etete GRA multipurpose Hall; School of Health, and Western Boys mini stadia among other mini stadia across the eighteen local government areas, including the Emotan College Basketball Court.
Continuing the pursuit of his set goals and objectives in fixing the sports sector, the government shifted its focus on human capital development in the sports sector as it consciously started investing in the turnaround of the two state-owned football clubs; Bendel Insurance Football Club and Edo Queens.
Obaseki’s concerted efforts paid off in the 2018/2019 football season when the encouragement of players and officials of Bendel Insurance FC caused them to qualify for promotion from the second tier of the nation’s football leagues to the Premier League after eleven years of wandering around in the wilderness of relegation. The team unfortunately couldn’t stand the pressure in the top-flight league and went back almost immediately the following season.
Notwithstanding, the Governor invested more in the team, raising the remuneration package of the team. In the 2022 football season, Insurance gained promotion to the Premier League and also won the NFL title in the process. The team since then has stamped its authority as a premier team and surprised the nation by finishing fifth in the league table and also won the 2023 Federation Cup which earned them the qualification ticket to represent Nigeria at the CAF Confederation Cup last year. All these highlighted achievements and more in other sports including gymnastics have reposted Edo and Nigeria on the world map.
To ensure proper management and maintenance of the world-class sports facilities in the state, Governor Obaseki reconstituted and inaugurated the Edo State Sports Commission on the 11th of March 2022. He made the right choice of Olympian Yussuf Alli as the Executive Chairman of the commission.
The Sports Commission board without delay organized a retreat where they reviewed their mandate and came out with a vision and mission for the actualisation of the set goal of the state government.
It is pertinent to note that since then, it has been one success story and the other. The most recent achievement is the record-breaking performance by Edo Queens in the 2024 Nigeria Women Football League Premiership in which the state-owned female football team won the Premier League title for the first time in Nigeria. They are now qualified for the WAFU B qualifying tournament for the CAF Champions League. The tournament is scheduled for August in Cote d’Ivoire.
At the general sports administration the Edo State Sports Commission under the leadership of Olympian Yussuf Alli, reconstituted the membership boards of 36 Sports Associations in the State which were inaugurated by the Governor on the 27th of April 2023, to help facilitate and drive the process of grassroots sports development.
This was followed by the establishment of Local Government Sports Committees in accordance with the Edo State Sports Commission’s Act. The committee though yet to be inaugurated, is meant to encourage and enforce School Sports programmes geared towards talent discovery and nurturing same for the state.
For clarity and focus, the Edo State Sports Commission in review of the activities viz a viz its weakness and strength of the various sports associations, streamlined and prioritized the areas where Edo has a comparative advantage. The Commission has now concluded plans for the commencement of the State League in fifteen sports this year with the target of raising athletes from the grassroots to stardom beginning this year.
The Sports Commission has also put all modalities in place for the Edo State Sports Festival 2024. This according to the chairman will serve as a platform for mass participation of Edo sports men and women, as well as provide an avenue for selection of athletes for national tournaments, including the National Sports Festival.
The Commission with the encouragement and support from the Governor has made tremendous achievements in many of the following areas:
In the year 2022, the state hosted two national championships – The Athletic Federation events
They also featured in the National Sports Festival which was held in Asaba, Delta state, and came out third overall best.
The state also featured in local tournaments through various sports associations including Aquatic Association and Gymnastics where athletes were discovered.
In 2023, the state facility hosted eleven National events and one international championship. These activities have in no small measure contributed to the microeconomics and tourism in the state.
In the same year, Edo athletes also participated in (19 or 90) ninety National championships and tournaments and won a total of 323 medals.
Edo athletes also featured in the 7th National Youth Games which took place in Asaba, Delta State, and finished in the 3rd position in the country.
On the new mandate of the Edo State Government for the discovery of 2000 raw talents every year, the youth games in Asaba gave the platform to the actual under 15 years athletes discovered in the state to compete with overaged athletes from other states who were on parade at the tournament, and the state contingent distinguished themselves. The sports commission has since continued with the process of nurturing them to stardom.
In their quest for the realization of their mandate, twenty-three Sports Associations in Edo state organized 54 local tournaments and harvested a total of 5,086 new talents discovered in the process.
The Yussuf Alli-led Edo State Sports Commission has invested in human capacity building as the board has facilitated the training and retraining of over 200 sports officers on basic ICT skills in the state.
Edo State Sports Commission is working. The state has truly become the destination of sports in Nigeria as the Handball Federation of Nigeria just concluded this year’s Ardova Premier League at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium in Benin City.
