Akwa Ibom sports officials plan to create a team that will look into why their athletes placed sixth at the recent Niger Delta Sports Festival. The state won only 37 medals total - 9 gold, 14 silver, 14 bronze. Athletes became upset during the event because they received just N5,000 instead of N30,000 for training camp pay. They blocked entrances at the Dakkada Skills Centre when this happened.
Sports Commissioner Paul Bassey told local sports writers on Friday that they need answers about these problems. He wants to improve future results through this investigation. The committee will study athlete complaints but not punish anyone. Their goal is to find better ways to handle tournaments going forward. Bassey missed much of the games himself but heard about embarrassing incidents.
The commissioner believes finding talented athletes starts at the local community level. He thinks this matches Governor Umo Eno's ARISE plan for the state. Bassey thanked the governor for hosting opportunities and the NDDC for fixing sports facilities. He promised another group would maintain these buildings properly. Emmanuel Akpan from a sports writer, praised the new separate sports ministry system.
Sports Commissioner Paul Bassey told local sports writers on Friday that they need answers about these problems. He wants to improve future results through this investigation. The committee will study athlete complaints but not punish anyone. Their goal is to find better ways to handle tournaments going forward. Bassey missed much of the games himself but heard about embarrassing incidents.
The commissioner believes finding talented athletes starts at the local community level. He thinks this matches Governor Umo Eno's ARISE plan for the state. Bassey thanked the governor for hosting opportunities and the NDDC for fixing sports facilities. He promised another group would maintain these buildings properly. Emmanuel Akpan from a sports writer, praised the new separate sports ministry system.
