PH Fans Bemoan Live AFCON Telecast Blackout

Football fans in Port Harcourt, Rivers State expressed disappointment over the failure of Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria (BON) to secure broadcasting right for the on-going African Cup of Nations (AFCON) in South Africa.
The sports fans who spoke in an exclusive interview with Tidesports in Port Harcourt yesterday described the development as embarrassing and shameful to soccer loving Nigerians who were desperate to watch live matches the continental game, particularly Super Eagles.
Mr Inime Alasia, a soccer enthusiast agued that the controversy between BON and organisers of the continental soccer fiesta in South Africa over broadcasting right was unacceptable to the teeming soccer loving Nigerians.
According to him, Nigerians deserved to sit in the comfort of their bedrooms, sitting rooms and drinking places to watch live matches of the continental games, adding that the claim by management of BON that the amount demanded by organisers of AFCON 2013 was outrageous was not enough to deny Nigerians the opportunity to watch live matches especially Super Eagles.
Alasia further said that Nigerians were tired of hearing unacceptable excuses for failure to execute people-oriented programmes.
Also speaking, Chika Okenwa pointed out that the crisis existing between BON and organisers of AFCON 2013 over broadcasting right was part of the decay in the African Confederation Football (CAF) body in recent times.
Okenwa said that CAF president Issa Hayatou has outlived his usefulness in the sport body in Africa in view of the dwindling fortunes of soccer in the continent.
He said that the continent needed the likes of John Wayne to be incharge of affairs in the sports sector in order to move the sport industry to the next level.
The soccer enthusiast noted that  the  rot in the organisation of football in Africa and Nigeria in particular had forced sports fans to shift interest and focus on European and Spanish leagues among others.
Mr Chime Nwankwo described the experience of many Nigerians in the on-going AFCON in South Africa as painful.
‘It is painful that many Nigerians could not watch match we participated in due to the failure of the Broadcasting Organisation of Nigeria”, Nwankwo lamented.