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“For long a time, sports, including the most popular of all: football, has been at a pitiable state in the country. The Nigeria Professional Football League is affected by maladministration that keeps retarding the growth of football in the country. From poor pitches, to owed salaries and wages, to harassment and assault of referees on matchdays and much more have crippled the growth of the league in Nigeria, thereby making it unattractive to potential sponsors.”
In this part of the world, the following of sports is so massive that on countless occasions it has proven irrefutably to be one of the very few things that unite us beyond ethnicity, religion and politics.
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development centers sports as an important enabler of sustainable development while establishing the need to contribute to sports for development and peace.
Sports has the capacity to promote peace, tolerance, and understanding, bringing people together across, cultures, religions and ethnic divides. Its principles of teamwork, fairness, discipline, and respect are compelling in the advancement of solidarity and social cohesion.
In the course to sustainable development, political governance is not absolute but the need to find spaces and platforms that bring people together under a common goal paramount. From this platforms, individuals could converge to improve their social skills and strengthen cultural values. With the physical activities of sports, it helps improve individual health and wellbeing, both physically and mentally, thereby extending the average life expectancy of the citizenry.
The capacity of sports to not only empower on an individual basis but unite and inspire people in building communities is yet another appeal.
In this part of the world, where we grapple with deep-seated acrimony across ethnic, religious and political lines, our government can utilise sports as a tool for social cohesion and national harmony.
In South Africa, Sports was once leveraged to heal national wounds and rise above differences. After being elected South Africa’s first post-Apartheid president, Nelson Mandela latched on to the Rugby World Cup to help foster the country’s healing process and prevent a civil war that many feared was inevitable.
On the global scene, world leaders have used sports as a means to promote peace and unity, such as the 1971 Chinese-American reconciliation through Table Tennis that ended two decades of unfriendly relations between the two superpowers.
It will also be mentioned that in 2008 the presidents of Armenia and Turkey used a World Cup qualifying match between their national teams to reopen diplomatic dialogue.
The fact that across age, gender, ethnicity and religion, sport is enjoyed by all makes it an important platform to unite people and build long lasting communities off the values it embodies.
For long a time, sports, including the most popular of all: football, has been at a pitiable state in the country. The Nigeria Professional Football League is affected by maladministration that keeps retarding the growth of football in the country. From poor pitches, to owed salaries and wages, to harassment and assault of referees on matchdays and much more have crippled the growth of the league in Nigeria, thereby making it unattractive to potential sponsors.
On the African continent, there is a lot more to be desired in getting our sports as a continent to compete favourably with counterparts from Europe, Asia and Americas. Save from a couple of African countries like South Africa, Morocco and Egypt that are getting it right with administration, others are still struggling to find their bearing to contribute to the overall development of sports on the continent.
There is a need for a radical revamp of sporting structures both in Nigeria and Africa. Thankfully, we can’t bemoan having a dearth of talents as if there is anything Africa is blessed with, it is the abundance of talents to explore any sports provided the right structures are in place to foster their development. Where we are missing it is in the right structures to be put in place by the right leadership. Upon this gap, it behooves on our leaders to start looking at sports beyond being just a mere physical activity but a social and economic wheel to accelerate the growth and development of the country and continent at large.
Sports is so enormous in capacity and value that with the right investment thrown into it, it could be a catalyst for the long-sought after unity and peace on the continent of Africa, knowing that victory happens when everyone comes together to play their part.
1 Timothy 4:8: “For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.”
Professor. Ofonime Emmanuel Bassey is a Security, Peace and Conflict Resolution Coach with decades of experience in the practice and promotion of Law Enforcement, Peace and Security through the Nigeria Police and the United Nations.
He is an advocate of Peace Leadership and Child Protection.
He has served and interacted at the top level management of the Nigeria Police as well as internationally as a United Nation’s Monitor/Mentor in Kosovo, Europe.
A professor of Peace Advocacy and Conflict Resolution, Dr. O.E Bassey is a certified United Nation’s Trainer, and currently the Director of ICOF Institute of Leadership, Peace and Conflict Resolution in Africa.
With his marks well-established in Peace Leadership both in Nigeria and Africa. Currently, he is the President, NISSI Safety Management Institute: An Institute of Peace Leadership.
Presently, he is spearheading a campaign tagged “The Next Peace Leaders”, a campaign that is billed to run from 2022-2023 with a target of training 37,000 young peace leaders.
For peace and security tips, consultations and trainings, reach him via:
Facebook: Dr. O.E Bassey
LinkedIn: Dr. O.E Bassey
Twitter: Dr. O.E Bassey
WhatsApp: +2347065828892
Mail: EmmanuelBassey@gmail.com
