Nigerian Newspapers
We want to lift Nigerian football through LIFT initiative –Adepoju
Former Super Eagles attacking midfielder, Mutiu Adepoju, has revealed his desire to contribute his quota to the development of Nigerian football through the Lagos International Football Tournament (LIFT) initiative. Speaking exclusively to ANDREW EKEJIUBA after the launch of the project in Lagos, he shared his experiences during his active days as a footballer, the challenges before LIFT and the way forward for the Nigerian league.
What actually made you to go into the Lagos International Football Tournament project?
The motivation came from the way I have seen things being done properly especially the way football is being organised in other parts of the world and I want the same to happen to Nigerian football. I managed 3SC FC of Ibadan and I noticed that during pre-season there are no major activities among clubs in the country because they are not having much of international matches during this period which I feel that our soccer fans deserve to be having every year.
You can see that South Africa are having so many big clubs coming into their country to play football during the preseason and the same is happening in Europe too, so why not Nigeria? That is why we had to promote the LIFT project and football in this regard in the country now.
Remember that Nigeria is known to be a very big football-loving nation, so we have to try to provide an avenue to promote pre-season tournaments so that people could be able to watch good football live.
Are you saying that this your own way of giving back to the society that made you what you are internationally in football?
Yes, it is a way of giving back to my country and saying thank you to many soccer fans that stood behind me throughout my active days in football and even after my retirement. Many soccer fans are aware that I was in Spain for so many years playing football and I saw the way people enjoyed football during the pre-season. Clubs from other countries often come visiting and I feel Nigeria should follow suit.
I believe LIFT is already a success in Nigeria because it is a way of encouraging our upcoming players or youths by giving them clinics and also using that same platform to discover the talented ones among them who will have the opportunity in being in our academy at the long run.
What were the major challenges you and your team faced in packaging this project, because we believe that nothing good comes easy?
To be sincere with you, we started this project in January this year. Though I had the vision earlier when I left 3SC Football Club and I said to myself, what’s next for me in this game? How can I contribute to the development of Nigerian football especially the league? To be candid, I was not happy the way the league was going and we all teamed up together in January to brainstorm and package this LIFT project.
Our initial challenge was where to start the project, and that was how we came to Lagos to discuss it with the Lagos State Government because we discovered that there are a lot of sporting facilities in the state with huge pool of corporate bodies to support the vision.
So, with the willingness and support of the good people of Lagos State, we called on the Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Hon Waheed Enitan Oshodi who carefully studied the proposal and saw that it was a laudable project. From there the proposal was taken Governor Babatunde Fashola (SAN) who finally looked at it and approved the project.
Since April we had the approval from Lagos State and today, we are working hand-in-hand with the Lagos State Football Association to actualise this vision.
It is worthy to state here that LIFT is not the project of Mutiu Adepoju only, but the project of every Nigerian that wants our football to develop. On the challenges we have been facing, it is not much because we had to make people to believe in the vision behind LIFT which was a challenge of its own since it is a unique thing that has not happened in the country before.
So people will need to ask questions and receive explanations from us. However, some people may be skeptical in coming forward to back the vision through sponsorship, but I believe that with time they will change their minds and key into the LIFT project because I foresee a great future in it.
You made mention of raising football academies within the five years of the existence of this project. Can you throw more light to this assertion?
Our intention is actually to have football academies that will help our upcoming footballers grow to stardom. However, we are not too hasty over the issue now because we want to take things stepwise by using the proceeds from the project to actualise all these dreams. Like I said earlier, I have seen things like this being done elsewhere, so we want to bring down our wealth of experience to bear in this project to the glory of Nigerian football.
As an advice, I really want people to believe in the vision behind LIFT because it will help lift our football from its present state, promote the hidden talent we have in Nigeria and attract investors to our league, within and outside the shores of the country.
From your analysis, can you say our present day youths, especially the footballers among them are lucky to have something like the LIFT to look up to?
Yes is my candid answer. I want say that they are very lucky. We also want to see these dreams we have for them to come to fruition because during our time we didn’t have this opportunity. We are giving them this opportunity to encourage them to become great soccer stars in future, and my advice to these upcoming footballers is that they should make good use of this opportunity to give their soccer career a great boost.
What are the major impediments confronting the growth and development of Nigerian league?
There so many things that have gone wrong with our league and I remember that even when I was managing 3SC we have been discussing all these problems.
First, the facilities are lacking and these facilities are very important for the development of the league.
Secondly, the security at our various stadia is not enough to checkmate hoodlums during league matches. Aside the aforementioned, there is a lack of willingness on the part of the major actors of the league like the administrators, players and match officials to do the right thing.
They have a lot to contribute to the development of the league which is seriously lacking.
We also need to believe in hard work in terms of turning the league around for good. Example, the crises in the league involving club owners, sponsors and administrators are making the league to look like a hard sell to sponsors and corporate bodies which is bad.
What is your advice to our upcoming footballers who are always in a haste to sign contracts abroad with lots of mistakes and regrets in the long run?
I will like to advice them to be more careful in this regard, but if you take a closer look at the poor economic situation of the country, you cannot blame them either.
The poverty level in the country is high and everyone wants to have food on his or her table, so any opportunity by these players is often grabbed tightly by both hands. Nevertheless, if our league is thick like it is in Egypt, there will be no room for such anomalies.
Today, most Egyptian players will prefer to play at home because their league is well organised and the players are comfortable and well paid. Also, these top football-playing nations have better playing facilities and I see this as one of the reasons our players are so eager to play abroad.
However, we need to address all these problems to stem the mass exodus of our players from our league. We really need to give our players good contracts that can sustain their means of livelihood.
Finally, to our players in the league, I want to also advice them to look out for good managers or agents who can help direct their careers better. They should avoid overzealous agents who are only after what will line their pockets without thinking about how to give the player’s career life.
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Posted in Nigerian Newspapers. A DisNaija.Com network.
Source: National Mirror Newspaper
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•Deploy more personnel as army chief vows to wipe out terror group
•Security beefed up at N’Assembly
Deji Elumoye and Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja
Abuja, Nigeria’s seat of power, is under a massive security cordon following threats of attacks by insurgents and the increasing wave of banditry in the contiguous states of Kaduna, Kogi, Nasarawa and Niger States, THISDAY’s investigation has revealed.
There has been a wave of kidnappings in the outskirts of the federal capital, notably Pegi, Tuganmaje and Kuje among others, which the police have battled in recent times.
The security situation in and around the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) was heightened by the pronouncement of the Niger State Governor, Mr. Sani Bello, that Boko Haram fighters who he said sacked 50 villages in the state and hoisted the terror group’s flag, were about two hours drive away from the FCT.
Security has also been beefed up at the National Assembly as operatives, yesterday, thoroughly screened every vehicle approaching the National Assembly complex in Abuja.
The deteriorating security situation nationwide prompted the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus, to warn that the 2023 general election may not hold, demanding the declaration of a state of emergency as well as the convocation of a national conference.
However, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, yesterday restated the Nigerian Army’s determination to annihilate Boko Haram.
But the Governor of Katsina State, Hon. Bello Masari, cautioned against declaring a state of emergency, saying doing so isn’t the solution to combat the security challenges facing the country.
The security of the nation’s airports was also in focus yesterday as the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) said there was no threat to them.
THISDAY’s investigations showed increased presence of troops, police, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) personnel and intelligence operatives at the three strategic entrances to the city notably, Keffi, Zuba and Gwagwalada.
More checkpoints were also mounted around Gwagwalada and Keffi.
THISDAY also observed increased intelligence deployment at the entrance and the borders of FCT with contiguous states.
Beyond the borders, there were more deployments and police patrols inside the city and increased intelligence deployments as well.
Security sources told THISDAY: “There are deployments here and there but they are routine. Alertness is key to a secure environment.”
It was also learnt that security agencies were involved in frenzied meetings throughout yesterday.
The meetings, coordinated by the office of the Chief of Defence Staff under the new joint operational strategy of the armed forces, were aimed at coordinating a joint response to possible threats of attack to the FCT.
“I understand the security teams have been meeting for some days now and if you look around you, you will notice that there are increasing patrols and numbers of security personnel. The threats are not been taken lightly,” a source said.
National Assembly workers, lawmakers and visitors also had a harrowing experience accessing the legislative complex due to heightened security in the area.
Security operatives thoroughly screened every vehicle approaching the National Assembly complex in Abuja, impeding both human and vehicular traffic.
The Sergeant-at-arm of the National Assembly and other security agencies supervised the operations, leading to huge traffic build-up inside the complex.
Legislative staff, visitors and lawmakers were seen patiently waiting for their cars to be searched so that they could go ahead with the business of the day.
Some staff and visitors at some point got tired of waiting and were seen alighting from their cars to trek from the gate to the complex.
Meanwhile, the ONSA has said there is no threat to the nation’s airports.
A statement by the Head of Strategic Communication, Mr. Zachari Usman, said the reports of threats to the airports were an internal correspondence of security threat assessment misconstrued as security threat to the airports.
PDP Demands State of Emergency
In a related development, the PDP National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, yesterday demanded the declaration of a state of emergency, warning that the 2023 general election might not hold if the federal government failed to tackle insecurity.
He called on the federal government to summon a national conference to address the spike in insecurity.
Secondus added that the national caucus of the party will meet today to discuss the state of the nation.
Addressing members of the National Executive Committee (NEC) in Abuja, Secondus said: “We are worried Abuja is not even safe. It is no longer politics. We got alert of plots to bomb and burn down our airports.
“We urge the federal government to declare a national state of emergency in security. There is the need to call a national conference to discuss the insecurity in the country.
“There may not be any election in 2023 in Nigeria due to insecurity. This government must listen to the people. The Buhari government should call a national confab to discuss security and state of the nation. It is no longer politics. This time we are not playing politics. Let’s keep politics aside and move the nation forward.”
He said the country had been grounded, regretting that there had been no matching response from the federal government.
Secondus said in the past, terrorism in the North was confined to the North-east, but with the report of Boko Haram occupying villages in Niger State, terrorism had spread to the North-central
“Herdsmen are also menacing in the West; gunmen causing havoc in the East; and the militants in the South; all killing, looting, raping, maiming and burning down homes. The situation is bad; Nigerians all over are living in fear,” he said.
The Senate Minority Leader, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, said the problem of Nigeria was outside of the PDP headquarters, while pledging the support of the Senate to the declaration of state of emergency in security.
Abaribe said he deliberately decided not to speak on the floor of the Senate but to allow the APC senators to speak so as to avoid being accused of giving a partisan colouration to the issue of insecurity.
He stated that only electoral reforms would give victory to the opposition party in the 2023 general election and ensure a democratic defeat of the APC-led federal government.
Also, the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Hon. Ndudi Elumelu, commended the NEC and the PDP leadership for their collective efforts at resolving the House leadership crisis.
The NEC meeting adopted the position of Secondus, calling on the federal government to convoke a national conference to discuss the state of insecurity in the country, according to a communiqué read by the National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan.
Army Chief Vows to Wipe Out Boko Haram
The army yesterday reiterated its commitment to wipe out Boko Haram.
Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, told reporters in Maiduguri, Borno State that Boko Haram had been defeated in many encounters and would continue to be defeated until it’s annihilated from Nigeria.
“We will take on Boko Haram decisively, and we are committed to the focus of the operations, which is the total annihilation of Boko Haram from Nigeria,” he said.
The COAS, who was visiting the headquarters of Operation Lafiya Dole in Maiduguri for the fifth time since his appointment four months ago, said the visit was to boost the morale of the troops, reassure them and listen to any issues affecting them.
Earlier, the Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Maj. Gen. Farouq Yahaya, lauded the visit, which he said had continued to boost the morale of the troops.
“We are honoured, we are grateful, we are encouraged by those visits. You provided us guidance, logistics and other things we required. We are most grateful for those visits,” Yahaya said.
State of Emergency Won’t Solve Security Challenges, Says Masari
Katsina State Governor, Hon. Aminu Masari, has, however, said declaration of a state of emergency won’t solve the security challenges facing the nation.
Masari, who spoke yesterday with journalists after meeting with the Chief of Staff to the President, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari at the State House, Abuja stated that he was against the recent call by the House of Representatives for the declaration of a state of emergency in the security sector as it would not solve the problem.
According to him, declaring a state of emergency will not achieve the desired effect as the security structure and personnel to be used to execute the emergency are already overstretched in a bid to safeguard lives and property.
Sourced From: THISDAYLIVE
Tribune Online
Nigeria records 55 new COVID-19 infections, total now 165,110
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has recorded 62 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 165,110. The NCDC disclosed this on its official Twitter handle on Friday. “55 new cases of #COVID19Nigeria; Lagos-21, Yobe-19, Ogun-6, Akwa Ibom-3, Kaduna-2, Plateau-2, FCT-1, Rivers-1.” YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE COVID-19: Nigeria Recorded […]
Nigeria records 55 new COVID-19 infections, total now 165,110
Tribune Online
Sourced From: Tribune Online
The government said that no worker should stay back beyond 6:00 p.m. within premises of buildings undergoing construction.
The post Insecurity: Lagos bans occupation of abandoned buildings appeared first on Premium Times Nigeria.
Sourced From: Premium Times Nigeria
Kamaru Usman has raked in a mammoth £1.1million, about N584.2 million after his impressive knockout victory over Jorge Masvidal on Saturday night, Sportivation.com.ng reports.
The Nigerian Nightmare has been handsomely rewarded for his stunning performance and he was the best-paid fighter on the card which was witnessed by 15, 000 fans in Florida.
According to Daily Mail, Usman earned £538,000 to show up, £459,000 pay-per-view bonus, a £43,000 sponsorship bonus and a well deserved £35,000 Performance of the Night bonus.
Jorge Masvidal also earned £358,000 to show, £186,000 in pay-per-view money and a £28,000 sponsorship bonus.
This is the biggest payday of Usman’s career so far and the Welterweight champion also benefited from the fact that Masvidal is also a top draw for the fans.
Kamaru Usman is a Nigerian-American professional mixed martial artist, former freestyle wrestler and graduated folkstyle wrestler.
Sourced From: Latest Nigeria News, Nigerian Newspapers, Politics
Nigeria records 55 new COVID-19 infections, total now 165,110
Military, Police Ring Abuja to Forestall Boko Haram Attack
UFC: Usman gets N584m after beating Masvidal
Insecurity: Lagos bans occupation of abandoned buildings
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