President Yar'Adua – Salvage Our Soccer (SOS)

By

Opeyemi Ajala

opeyemiajala@yahoo.com

Saturday June 2, on my way to the ‘garrison’ city of Ibadan for a social function and had to navigate the undulating highway aka Lagos - Ibadan expressway which had become unmotorable as a result of the showers of rainfall that morning which erupted in the usual traffic Jam ‘Go Slow’ on a Trunk ‘A’ Federal Highway which no doubt is the busiest in the country. While hoping to reach Ibadan as soon as practicable, I found solace in the dailies, pondering on the fate of the Super Eagles in the Ghana 2008 Nations Cup qualifier match dubbed ‘Raid on Entebbe’ and hoping to be proved wrong as I had earlier granted audience to a Foreign media that sought my opinion on the match which I ‘patriotically’ never fancied the Eagles chances in view of the shoddy and crisis laden preparations, a match we later lost 1-2,thank goodness the Head-to-Head rule still favours the Eagles (many thanks to Senegalese referee Diatta Badara for overruling Geoffrey Surunkuma’s goal in the earlier fixture at the MKO Abiola stadium in Abeokuta.

On my way back to Lagos, and passing through the 3SC Akinola Maja camp in Jericho, I could not but mourn the demise of the once dreaded club side with unuttered epitaph of ‘Here lies the remains of a continental great’, an issue that was further compounded upon tuning the radio for the FRCN Network news, where the outgoing(re-appointed?) Information Minister, Mr. Frank Nweke (Jnr) while responding in an organized party in his honour by the Parastatals in the Ministry highlighted the two most memorable events in his stint as a Minister to be his visit to the English Premiership League to ensure Nigerian stations have the franchise to live broadcast of the Premiership, which hitherto was the exclusive preserve of DSTV and secondly his visit to CNN office in Atlanta to denounce the CNN story by the now fired (or resigned) Kenyan born African Correspondent Jeff Koinange on the Niger Delta militancy which the FG argued utterly disregards the most elementary principle of journalism as no government official was interviewed.

However, this piece is more concerned about the visit to the English Premiership by a high powered government delegation led by the Honourable Minister of Information speaks volume about the power of football as a commercial and emotional bride. And one needs salute the courage of the FG in ensuring the local stations are not denied the broadcasts right to the richest league in the world that generates GBP1.7 Billion in TV rights and a further GBP1.45 Billion in turnover, after all 75% of the adverts are by Nigerian institutions, the league is so popular that a military formation in Lagos specially installed a dish that translates the premiership to all nooks and corners, and by extension the neighborhoods just because the Commandant witnessed the influx of people into the barracks aftermath of a premiership match for a fee and to forestall security lapses, all houses in the formation can now access the premiership FOC! The intrinsic merchandise value of the league in Nigeria is inherent in the souvenirs that flood our market form Lapel pins, Mufflers, Cutleries, Towels, Jerseys and even undies! And several supporters’ clubs from Bama to Bonny, and Abeokuta to Aba and of course the colony of Lagos, while most local clubsides cannot boast of a single fans club.

The sad commentary is how the English Premiership that tops the leagues of wealthy leagues with GBP1.4 Billion in turnover ahead of Italy (GBP1 Billion); Germany (GBP0.8 Billion); Spain (GBP0.8 Billion); France (0.6 Billion) now has a stranglehold on a nation with a population of at least 140 million (afterall no body is disputing the figures already gazetted to be lower) at the expense of the domestic football epitomized in the league. This was the same league that was privileged to have greats sides like IICC (now 3SC); Enugu Rangers; Bendel Insurance (Edo Insurance); Spartans (later Iwuanyanwu Nationale, now Heartland); Raccah Rovers; Stationary Stores; DIC Bees (Ranchers Bees);Calabar Rovers; Sharks; Mighty Jets; NNB; ACB (Lagos Rangers); Vasco Da Gama; Water Corporation; NEPA Flash Flamingoes; Abiola Babes; Leventis United; Falcons (now Enyimba) et la. From the 70s till the mid 90s, the league gained much prominence with the crème de la crème in the game and the live commentaries on Radio orchestrated by the late Ernest Okonkwo (of blessed memory) with other great broadcasters and spiced up with the Sunday televised match of the week and not ignoring the detailed match preview and review that adorned the back pages of dailies and sometimes front pages (the 1986 Challenge Cup Final is a locus clasicuss) coupled with musical recordings by ace musicians on the beautiful game, the most memorable the 1972 Challenge Cup Final by the late Ayinla Omowura, all points to the acme of domestic football in our shores.

Globalization aided by inappropriate planning necessitated the mass exodus from the domestic scene, but the bulk of the game lies at the feet of the (mal)administrators that have made the brand most unattractive over the years while the players sees it as a mere means to an end anywhere else - from the advanced leagues of Europe to the backwaters of Iraq, Vietnam, Malta, Iran! This is in contrast to what is obtainable elsewhere in the more organized Maghreb leagues of North Africa. Brazil’s Manager Carlos Dunga once cautioned the Brazilian press to pay attention to other leagues where players of Brazilian descent ply their skills, and not OVER depend on the domestic scene, this was aftermath of a Journalist’s query of Netherland based Heerenveen striker Afonso Alves name in the squad to face England in the first full international at the GBP757 million constructed Wembley stadium that ended in a one all draw.

For the domestic league scene to gain pre-eminence as it was in the ‘years of plenty’ effective and achievable master plan is desirable as no meaningful development can vegetate in an aridity of confusion. This is where it behoves President Umar Yar’Adua (GCFR) to create the enabling environment for the game to prosper (himself being an avid squash player) a game he boasted of his prowess to test his fitness level against anybody in the heat of the health debate.

Foremost, the issue of security should be of paramount importance, because security personnel must be re-orientated that sports is not a ‘do-or-die affair, and the need to effectively nip crisis in the bud to forestall a repeat of the Igeniwari killing in a 1995 FA cup match in Ibadan, Enyimba – Akwa United fiasco, and the security breach experienced during the commissioning of the Teslim Balogun Stadium on May 25,2207 all these signal a negative advert for the game and must be taken care of to lure back respectable Nigerians to the Stadia as it was years back when the slogan was ‘come late to Onikan, miss the first goal’. The English premiership sides are redeveloping facilities to attract more spectators which nets Manchester United GBP67.7 million,Chelsea (GBP152.8 million), Arsenal (GBP133 miilion), Liverpool GBP121.6miilion) in revenue. This is in spite of the activities of a few alcohol driven hooligans who are well tamed by the Security Personnel even as Liverpool fans are named the most violent in Europe by UEFA.

The issue of broadcasting cannot be downplayed, as this will ensure nations also pay us visit as we did the EPL to secure our rights as the power of the media which was well documented at the Monaco conference makes the players heroic models in the heart of the reading, listening, and viewing public, this is undoubtedly the major strength of the English Premiership. In 1996, Onikan witnessed a full house just because fans wanted a glimpse of the rave of the moment – Peter Anyilobi (incidentally then a law student at our alma mater, the great ABU) an Enyimba player who opened the season with a hattrick against NEPA in Lagos. The power of the media improves the officiating as nothing is done behind close doors, this also made a Jay Jay Okocha the symbol of Nigeria in France where his PSG crested shirt was handed President Obasanjo by his host President Chirac during a State visit.

The Soludo consolidation tonic in the banking industry necessitated the disinvestment of government’s holding to not more than 10% and I am hopeful that the same will work for football if clubs can be free from the whims and caprices of political godfatherism but to be more efficiently and profitably run to even return more revenue to the coffers of government in the form of Tax receipts, the English Premiership generated a whooping GBP650 million tax revenue for the British government in the 2005/2006 season, this I believe will also give VAT a breather and of course improves the states of adequately maintained infrastructural facilities. In essence Privatization is Key, this is called Public Private Partnership in Education parlance, this is only attainable once proper atmosphere is created by the Presidnet Yar’Adua’s administration, then the beautiful game can prosper domestically while we still have more than enough to export as a nation, no doubt it is restoration time.

OPEYEMI AJALA *A Chartered Accountant and the Presenter of Eagle Sports Hour on Eagle Cable Television*