Ekeji Promises Credibility In Sports Administration

Patrick Ekeji, Director-General, National Sports Commission (NSC), says the commission will pursue the restoration of credibility to sports administration in the country.

Ekeji made the pledge in Abuja at the weekend while receiving handover notes from Alhaji Sani Ndanusa, the former Sports Minister and Chairman of the NSC.

All ministers, including Ndanusa, were affected by the dissolution of the Federal Executive Council last Wednesday by Acting President Goodluck Jonathan.

Ekeji said the case of the missing 236,000 dollars at the secretariat of the Nigeria Football Federation was a matter the commission would tackle soon.

“The matter is not closed yet and the recommendations of the White Paper on the issue will be revisited and we will act accordingly,” he said.

The money was reportedly missing from the safe of the NFF on March 19 and five suspects arrested in connection with it have been arraigned.

The director-general said part of the credibility restoration was the issue of litigation regarding elections into the Board of the Nigeria Premier League.

“We have already looked into that matter and we are stepping in to ensure that we do not have a series of conflicts disrupting the smooth running of sports in our land,” he said.

Ekeji assured Ndanusa that the NSC would continue with the policies and ideas he put in place during his 14-month tenure.

“We will ensure that those policies you enunciated are continued during your short break because we know that they have helped to uplift sports in Nigeria,” he said.

The NSC director-general lauded Ndanusa for bringing about what he described as positive changes in the administration of sports.

“There are so many legacies you left behind such as the tax rebate and community sports centres.

“What you did in a short period is more than what was achieved by three past sports ministers put together,” he said.

Ndanusa, before handing over, had asked for forgiveness from all NSC staff as well as from other members of the sports family.

“Not all drivers are good but it is important that all passengers agree with him. This you did and I thank you all for bearing with me and supporting me.

“However, I apologise if there were mistakes on my part. They were not intentional but necessary in my quest to re-engineer Nigerian sports,” he said.

The former minister expressed satisfaction that he had brought about a change in sports administration during the period he was in charge.