Sports
Minister Orders National Stadiams Shut
The minister, who has also banned all sporting activities across the country to mitigate the spread of the virus, has advised Nigerian youths to adhere strictly to safety measures put in place by the Federal Government.
The Federal Government had called off the National Sports Festival as a result of the pandemic, just as the weekly Federal Executive Council meeting was suspended, while workers from levels 12 and below have been directed to work from home.
Only on Tuesday, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) had postponed the 2020 Tokyo Olympics till 2021 as a result of the spread of the virus.
Dare, who has been at the forefront of the fight against the virus, yesterday donated hand sanitisers, handwashers and other sanitary materials to staff of his ministry and the adjourning communities in the Federal Capital Territory.
Dare said the gesture was to help prevent the spread of the virus by ensuring that people adhered to hygienic instructions.
“We have a responsibility to help fight against the spread of COVID-19 by maintaining simple hygiene of hand washing, sanitizing our hands and maintaining social distance.
“We must be our brother’s keepers at a time like this. We must lend support to those infected and prevent further spread through consistent enlightenment and education.
“We cannot take anything for granted. All hands must be on deck to fight this scourge. The Federal Government through the Ministry of Health and other agencies are doing everything possible to manage the spread of the virus. We have a responsibility to lend support to these efforts.”
Iwobi spoke to Tidesports source ahead of Nigeria’s crunch playoff semi-final against Gabon on Thursday, November 13, in Rabat, Morocco.
The 28-year-old was reacting to Nigeria’s shaky World Cup qualifying campaign that saw the Eagles finish second in Group C behind South Africa’s Bafana Bafana.
“We’ve managed to rescue ourselves from the dead,” Iwobi told Tidesports source.
We know we have the players and the abilities to compete against any other country in the world.”
The Fulham star pointed to Nigeria’s star power, highlighting African Footballer of the Year winners Ademola Lookman and Victor Osimhen as proof of the squad’s quality.
“We have last year’s African best player (Ademola Lookman), the year before that (Victor Osimhen),” he said.
“It’ll be a shame if we don’t make it, but we have a lot of confidence. We just have to prove it to ourselves.”
Nigeria’s path to the United States, Canada and Mexico has been turbulent, with two coaches departing during the early stages of qualifying before Éric Chelle steadied the ship to steer the Super Eagles into November’s CAF playoffs.
Four nations from the continent – Nigeria, Cameroon, DR Congo and Gabon – will vie for a solitary spot to compete in next March’s inter-confederation playoffs, with a view to joining the already nine qualified African nations at the Finals.
It would mark Iwobi’s second appearance at the World Cup Finals and the Super Eagles’ first since the 2018 edition of the competition.
Back then, Iwobi featured in all three games as Nigeria was knocked out in the group stage.
The Chief Executive Officer(CEO) and Publisher of the Atlantic Bell Online medium, Mr. Celestine Ogolo has advised sports writers in Nigeria to diversify in sports writing and not to concentrate on football reporting alone.
The Deputy National President of Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) Mr. Bonny Nyong has expressed commitment to support sports development and move SWAN forward.