The leadership of the Nigeria Basketball Federation is optimistic that the D’Tigers jerseys at the seaport in Lagos will be cleared before the commencement of the Olympics.
Reacting to a recent media report, the federation’s president, Engr Musa Kida said that all hands are on deck over the clearance of the kits from its sponsor-Peak.
“The Federal Ministry of Sports is aware of the situation and they have stepped in and are in discussions with the relevant bodies.”
“I can assure you that the Minister of Youth and Sports, Honourable Sunday Dare is in discussion with the Ministry of the Finance who is in charge of such waiver on Customs duties.”
“The NBBF is an agency of the government and it is expected that such a fee would not be a source of worry for us because if you look at what they are asking for and our financial capacity, there is no way we can raise such money on our own.”
For the federation, the jersey the team is going to wear at the games should not be a primary source of worry as he advised fans to focus more on the preparations and funding of the Olympics teams.
“Nigerians should focus on what the federation, coaching staff and the players are doing right to get ready for the Olympics.”
He promised that the NBBF will not spare efforts to ensure the best performance ever of the Nigerian basketball teams at any Olympics.
