By Godspower Eguasa
The Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has received the newly elected President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Ibrahim Musa Gusau, charging the new management of the nation’s football to key into the global sports economy.
Obaseki congratulated the new NFF Executives on their emergence and said that the victory is a well-deserved one which can only be given by God.
He urged the new NFF President to be transparent, open and accommodating while providing exemplary leadership and guidance towards transforming sports in the country.
“I want to start by formally congratulating the chairman and the members of the executive committee of the NFF on your victory at the recently conducted elections in Edo State. It is the Lord’s doing.
“We also want to thank you and members of the football community for the maturity that was displayed during the election. As you know, Edo is home of sports, sports is in our DNA as a people, particularly football and that is what we are known for amongst others in Nigeria. So, we do not joke about sports in Edo” Obaseki said.
He continued: “The global football economy today is one we as a county cannot afford not to benefit from by participating. We have had challenges in the management of our football in Nigeria, but these are not challenges that cannot be overcome.
“Key is the resourcing, the funding, the financing of football, we believe and expect and hope that during your tenure, the required tenets which are transparency, openness and accommodation are things we would see so that we can attract resources we know are available in this country into our football”.
He added: “No matter how disunited we may seem, no matter how we are at each other as Nigerians, one thing that unites us is football. As a State, rest assured that we will cooperate with you because we believe in what you and the NFF stand for.”
The Governor assured that his administration will continue to invest in sports, more so with the new Sports Commission which has been given the mandate to promote grassroots sports.
Earlier, the new NFF President said he came to express the gratitude of his new executives to the Governor for serving as a good host to the NFF election.
“Recently we were in Benin for a very historic moment, that is, the election of the Nigeria Football Federation. Everything went well, with the support and assistance we got from your Government, the event was a huge success, beyond the expectations of many people. The election has been rated highly by even CAF and FIFA,” Gusau said.
