Minister for Youths and Sports development, Sunday Dare has now come out to clear the air surrounding the uncertainty over the national sports festival which has taken several turns of postponement due to the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic which began early last year.
Much to the relief of athletes and fans, the minister obliged to consideration of safety protocols, protection of human lives especially at a seemingly difficult time of the pandemic second wave as reasons behind the further postponement and date shifts, sports247.ng gathered.
Dare admitted: “Two subsequent postponement contingent upon the pandemic itself, we had announced 14th of February to 28th at the close of December last year, unfortunately, because of development beyond our control and mindful of the second wave and its virulence and because we have insisted that we will be properly guided, all along we had work very closely with the PTF inclusive of NCDC, ministry of health to check the preparedness and even though Edo State is prepared in terms of sporting infrastructure, the COVID-19 infrastructure in place, we are mindful of the COVID 19-second wave.”
“And of course the issue of the cost implication of the postponement so it’s been decided that the sports festival will still hold but no longer start this 24th of February, a futuristic date in April will be announced and again we’ll be properly guided,” he cleared.
“The sports festival I must emphasize is Nigeria’s version of the Olympics so it’s really important. This is an Olympic year, we are barely four, five months to the Olympic, we pick some of our top athletes, young athletes from the sports festival.”
“So in an Olympic year, holding such festival is inescapable but again we are properly guided and we hope and pray that in April, we can bring this festival on,” Dare positively remarked.
He further noted the importance of the sports festival because over 14,000 of those involved are the youths, the young people, some of them for over one year have remained inactive for the rare source of revenue and that being able to hold the sports festival will help keep the youth busy.
