To balance an undesirable story which I received from the Kano state camp in faraway Asaba, the capital of Delta state, the venue of the recently concluded the 7th National Youth Games, I as usual called the acting Chairman of Kano State Sports Commission, Malam Bala Sani Shehu for his own side of the story.
My questions to the acting chairman were short, clear and simple which had to do with the negative reports that reached my table that most of the sports equipment and tools used by the Kano state athletes were old because his management did not provide new ones.
There were also reports that the tracksuit and other sportswear used by Kano athletes were the old stock which the previous management of the commission provided.
The commission was also faulted for not providing good and befitting sporting wear for Kano Athletes to wear during match pass which made them look poorly dressed to the surprise of many.
Another sad event that irked all of the stakeholders was how the Sports Commission short changed them in the payment of their allowances. They were particularly angry with the way and manner that their ten days allowances were cut to eight days.
In fact the accusations were many but when I contacted the acting chairman of the commission, Malam Bala Sani Shehu, via cellphone call, he debunked all of them and tagged them as falsehoods which were aimed to tarnish his image and that of the commission.
He then informed me that the results and the position Kano state attained in the Delta games were very good, encouraging and the best so far in the history of the state’s participation in the games since its inception in 2013 in Abuja.
At first I hundred percent believed him as I was reluctant to look at the Delta finals medal’s table to see for myself the position and the number of Gold, Silver and Bronze Kano state athletes hauled that made him to see his Delta state outing as the best.
But a situation warranted me to glance at the medals table last week where I saw Kano state placed 21st position with One Gold, Five Silver and Nine Bronze medals totaling 15 medals.
I then recalled what the acting chairman told me about this year’s performance and I asked myself how and what were his reasons for his words because I didn’t see anything special there.
I then postulated several questions in my mind. Was the acting chairman referring to his Delta outing as the best because of the 15 medals he totally hauled or what? Or was he referring to the position the state occupied?
If it was because of the number of medals Kano won, the acting chairman was wrong because two gold medals are better than all the medals he won for the state. In fact, two gold medals are better than 100 silver and 100 bronze put together.
This is because a state with two gold will be placed on top of a state with 200 or more silver and bronze medals, because all I know is that a single gold medal is better and more important than 100 silver medals and 100 bronze put together.
And that explains why if one looks a little bit up, he or she will notice that states like Borno with Two Gold, Katsina Three Gold and Plateau with Five Gold are all above Kano state.
Yes, Kano might have a larger number of medals than the three northern states mentioned above, but their position on the medal’s table was better than that of Kano state due to the higher number of gold medals they hauled.
The acting chairman must know that the two gold medals the Borno state have was better and stronger than all the 15 medals he was praising and celebrating his commission for hauling.
But honestly I see nothing to celebrate from the 21st position Kano is occupying with only one Gold where states that are lagging behind Kano in terms of sports followership and sports development are now ahead of us on the final Medals table.
The acting chairman should know that the position Kano occupied in the 2017 edition of the Games which was hosted in Ilorin the capital of Kwara state was far better than that of now because Kano hauled 2 gold, 2 silver and 3 bronze medals.
Even the 2018 edition which was hosted again in Ilorin, the capital of Kwara state, Kano won 2 gold, 3 silver and 3 bronze medals.
To most of us, the two outings stated above 2017 and 2018 are better than the one the acting chairman is celebrating and calling as the best.
At this point, I want to implore the acting chairman to always cross-check his facts or records at hand before making any conclusion.
The acting chairman if at all wants to keep and brag with a good record(s), should have to work for it. He should set the ball rolling now.
He should look at ways to keep his players and athletes’ fits all the time by keeping them engaged.
And the only way to do so is by organizing internal competitions like mini festivals, inter-local government and senatorial games etc. This will help him discover hidden talents that are scattered all over the state.
The acting chairman should continue to be sponsoring his athletes to all national and zonal competitions.
It is sad that despite the large soccer followership and players we have in Kano state, we cannot produce a team that will win gold for the state in Delta. This must also be addressed.
The right and the best must be the only ones needed to be in our future teams. The selection process must not be left in the hands of the coaches alone to avoid this shameful act.
A technical team of four to five or more should be saddled with the responsibility of scouting for players that will play for the state. This will no doubt reduce or stop the coaches’ highhandedness in the selection process of players.
Besides, it will give only the best the chance to produce good results and also showcase their talents to scouters and junior national teams’ handlers.
