Nigerian Official Bitter Over N2 Billion Olympic Money

[MI5]

http://allafrica.com/stories/201208030640.html

An official from a sport neglected in Nigeria yesterday pleaded with President Goodluck Jonathan to restructure sports in Nigeria and make it more result-oriented.

The official who begged for anonymity cried out to the President when reports had it that more than N2b had been released for the Olympic Games here in London. He was bitter that the money was released so late that it did not help Nigeria's preparation for the ongoing London Games.

"N2b can help our sports and help us win gold medals at the Olympic Games if it is released in time and spread over four years for preparation," the official said, lamenting that the last minute release of funds only creates room for corruption as the whole money is hardly used for the purpose for which it was meant.

"About N2.3b was said to be the total so far released for the London games but I am sure that they have not spent more than N800m on our preparation and they couldn't have spent more than N200m here in London because the host is providing accommodation, feeding the athletes and providing some other logistics for all teams," the official said. He continued:

"From the last Olympics in Beijing till date if we used N2b to develop our athletes, train them, expose them and enter them for competitions I will be telling you how many gold medals we can win here in London.
Relevant Links


But we are still running sports according to government lines and all monies approved and allocated each year must be spent that year and when we have the Olympic games we will be waiting for budget approval and implementation to start preparation at the time others would have finished theirs.

The whole thing is wrong. As far as I'm concerned the N2b released for the London Games was more of a waste because the money did not do much for our preparation.

It came late and we could have done better with such an amount. I want our President to restructure our sports so that funds released for sports will be useful to sports because we are not developing sports in Nigeria, we only attend competitions where we spend a lot without spending when it matters most."

What the official complained of has been the practice in Nigeria for years but appears more pronounced now than ever before. The National Sports Commission was even said to have borrowed money to execute some Olympic qualifying events. But now they could have more than they would need to compete here.

[Damunk]

We don't need faceless officials to spell out the obvious for us.
Faceless officials have no impact unless they are going to name names and make public the facts

[MI5]

He didn't get a piece of the action which is why he is angry... Naija style...

We don't need faceless officials to spell out the obvious for us.
Faceless officials have no impact unless they are going to name names and make public the facts

[Prince]

We don't need faceless officials to spell out the obvious for us.
Faceless officials have no impact unless they are going to name names and make public the facts

The fact is we speant 2 billion and we have no medal to show for it.

[marko]

they probably released funds just weeks before the olympics and expected miracles to happen, i often use the word illiterates, these are the types of people that pass as leaders in Nigeria, what they need is a 10-15 year program, no short cuts to sucess, if Nigeria serioulsy wants to do well in sports, it takes a whole lot of effort, organisation, scouting, long term preparation to yield results, talking in terms of inter-house sports where potential athletes are found, state championships, national championships, univeristy games, then of course sponsorship, so much involved!! the serious nations are the ones we are seeing in the top 20 list of medal winners, the unserious ones are the ones fighting for bronze, no clues where Nigeria can be found!!

[Guv007]

they probably released funds just weeks before the olympics and expected miracles to happen, i often use the word illiterates, these are the types of people that pass as leaders in Nigeria, what they need is a 10-15 year program, no short cuts to sucess, if Nigeria serioulsy wants to do well in sports, it takes a whole lot of effort, organisation, scouting, long term preparation to yield results, talking in terms of inter-house sports where potential athletes are found, state championships, national championships, univeristy games, then of course sponsorship, so much involved!! the serious nations are the ones we are seeing in the top 20 list of medal winners, the unserious ones are the ones fighting for bronze, no clues where Nigeria can be found!!

They are crooks, illiterates ain't those who hold on to funds that are probably accruing interest in some account before releasing it.

[Damunk]

We don't need faceless officials to spell out the obvious for us.
Faceless officials have no impact unless they are going to name names and make public the facts

The fact is we speant 2 billion and we have no medal to show for it.

Thats the only fact we know. We need to know who got those funds and what they did with it.

[marko]

well i will presume as someone said, it sat in an account for interest to accrue for months before releasing the funds, it was probabaly shared by senior officials, nothing can work in Nigeria as far as these types of people keep on getting these jobs

[kash n' karry]

Kongi said it best 150 million Peeps, 0 medals.. .. Up Nigeria

[Damunk]

well i will presume as someone said, it sat in an account for interest to accrue for months before releasing the funds, it was probabaly shared by senior officials, nothing can work in Nigeria as far as these types of people keep on getting these jobs

The problem is, 'these type of people' are Nigerians - like you.
They all think and claim they are 'different' until the moment they are exposed to power - and then its GAME OVER.

[platinum]

Two words for what plagues EVERY facet of Nigeria. Greed & Planning.

Figure that and we'll be a-okay.

[soothsayer]

So there is the money, just no honest people ....

[realtrouble]

well i will presume as someone said, it sat in an account for interest to accrue for months before releasing the funds, it was probabaly shared by senior officials, nothing can work in Nigeria as far as these types of people keep on getting these jobs

The problem is, 'these type of people' are Nigerians - like you.
They all think and claim they are 'different' until the moment they are exposed to power - and then its GAME OVER.

They might be Nigerian, but they are not like me, I live and work in a result oriented environment and I must deliver successful results. The Nigerian running Nigeria sports, will never , I repeat never , last 1 month in my working environment.

[anointed]

http://allafrica.com/stories/201208030640.html

An official from a sport neglected in Nigeria yesterday pleaded with President Goodluck Jonathan to restructure sports in Nigeria and make it more result-oriented.

The official who begged for anonymity cried out to the President when reports had it that more than N2b had been released for the Olympic Games here in London. He was bitter that the money was released so late that it did not help Nigeria's preparation for the ongoing London Games.

"N2b can help our sports and help us win gold medals at the Olympic Games if it is released in time and spread over four years for preparation," the official said, lamenting that the last minute release of funds only creates room for corruption as the whole money is hardly used for the purpose for which it was meant.

"About N2.3b was said to be the total so far released for the London games but I am sure that they have not spent more than N800m on our preparation and they couldn't have spent more than N200m here in London because the host is providing accommodation, feeding the athletes and providing some other logistics for all teams," the official said. He continued:

"From the last Olympics in Beijing till date if we used N2b to develop our athletes, train them, expose them and enter them for competitions I will be telling you how many gold medals we can win here in London.
Relevant Links


But we are still running sports according to government lines and all monies approved and allocated each year must be spent that year and when we have the Olympic games we will be waiting for budget approval and implementation to start preparation at the time others would have finished theirs.

The whole thing is wrong. As far as I'm concerned the N2b released for the London Games was more of a waste because the money did not do much for our preparation.

It came late and we could have done better with such an amount. I want our President to restructure our sports so that funds released for sports will be useful to sports because we are not developing sports in Nigeria, we only attend competitions where we spend a lot without spending when it matters most."

What the official complained of has been the practice in Nigeria for years but appears more pronounced now than ever before. The National Sports Commission was even said to have borrowed money to execute some Olympic qualifying events. But now they could have more than they would need to compete here.

The synergy of inept/incompetent leaders and cunning sports officials. If I were the president, I will never release any money for Olympics preparation in the year of the Olympics. Even they had released N20b this year, te result would still have been the same.

What a waste.

[CMS]

He didn't get a piece of the action which is why he is angry... Naija style...

We don't need faceless officials to spell out the obvious for us.
Faceless officials have no impact unless they are going to name names and make public the facts

Kpom! Even when its released, nothing will happen.

[MI5]

FG disappointed at Nigeria’s dismal Olympics outing -Sport minister

http://www.punchng.com/london-2012-olym ... cs-outing/


August 9, 2012 by Pius Ayinor, London

The Minister of Sports, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, on Thursday expressed the Federal Government’s disappointment at the dismal performance of Team Nigeria at the ongoing London 2012 Olympics. Speaking at a press conference tagged “Nigeria Olympic Review” at the Nigeria House in Stratford, London, the minister admitted that poor preparations marred the country’s chances at the games.

“Our inability to win any medal so far is as disappointing for my team and myself and for all Nigerians everywhere.
“But we must have the courage to see it as it is.

This is a clear testimony to how far our sports has fallen behind,” Abdullahi noted.
He, however, said he would not indulge in a blame game but would take the dismal performance as “an opportunity to rebuild.”
The minister, who described the situation as a “crisis,” said it was “the necessary disequilibrium required for serious actions and drastic change.

We will not allow this opportunity to pass.”
He stated, “Having been appointed Minister of Sports only two months to the Olympics, I have had to learn very quickly.
“And I have not received a better lesson than in the last two weeks of London 2012.

“We have been hoping too much on luck, but for once, God is telling us he’s not a magician.”
He praised Team Nigeria for putting up a brave showing at the Olympics, noting, “Our athletes tried their best. We can only hope to build on what they have done.

“According to a Yoruba saying, as you pose for a camera that is how you will appear. There’s no magic.”
More details later.

[Mudi E]

[MI5]

[Riversboy]

“We have been hoping too much on luck, but for once, God is telling us he’s not a magician.”

“According to a Yoruba saying, as you pose for a camera that is how you will appear. There’s no magic.”

RB.

[Damunk]

“We have been hoping too much on luck, but for once, God is telling us he’s not a magician.”

“According to a Yoruba saying, as you pose for a camera that is how you will appear. There’s no magic.”

RB.

Which Yorubabsaying is that o?
What is the Yoruba word for 'camera' sef?

[CMS]

This is joke right?

FG disappointed at Nigeria’s dismal Olympics outing -Sport minister

http://www.punchng.com/london-2012-olym ... cs-outing/


August 9, 2012 by Pius Ayinor, London

The Minister of Sports, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, on Thursday expressed the Federal Government’s disappointment at the dismal performance of Team Nigeria at the ongoing London 2012 Olympics. Speaking at a press conference tagged “Nigeria Olympic Review” at the Nigeria House in Stratford, London, the minister admitted that poor preparations marred the country’s chances at the games.

“Our inability to win any medal so far is as disappointing for my team and myself and for all Nigerians everywhere.
“But we must have the courage to see it as it is.

This is a clear testimony to how far our sports has fallen behind,” Abdullahi noted.
He, however, said he would not indulge in a blame game but would take the dismal performance as “an opportunity to rebuild.”
The minister, who described the situation as a “crisis,” said it was “the necessary disequilibrium required for serious actions and drastic change.

We will not allow this opportunity to pass.”
He stated, “Having been appointed Minister of Sports only two months to the Olympics, I have had to learn very quickly.
“And I have not received a better lesson than in the last two weeks of London 2012.

“We have been hoping too much on luck, but for once, God is telling us he’s not a magician.”
He praised Team Nigeria for putting up a brave showing at the Olympics, noting, “Our athletes tried their best. We can only hope to build on what they have done.

“According to a Yoruba saying, as you pose for a camera that is how you will appear. There’s no magic.”
More details later.

[anointed]

“We have been hoping too much on luck, but for once, God is telling us he’s not a magician.”

“According to a Yoruba saying, as you pose for a camera that is how you will appear. There’s no magic.”

RB.

Which Yorubabsaying is that o?
What is the Yoruba word for 'camera' sef?

Ireje o si ni foto.

[MI5]

We have failed, cries Sport Minister

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/08/we-h ... -minister/


By Tony Ubani reporting from London

Sports Minister, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi has described Team Nigeria’s predicament in the on-going London 2012 Olympics without a medal as a clear testimony to how far Nigerian sports have fallen behind.

The Minister who addressed hordes of Journalists at the Nigerian House in Stratford alongside NOC President, Engr Sani M. Ndanusa, Chef De Mission of Team Nigeria Dr Patrick Ekeji and NOC Scribe, Tunde Popoola while admitting his disappointment noted that it was a scientific diagnosis of our condition; a clear testimony to how far our sports have fallen.


‘’We shall therefore not attempt any excuses or indulge in any unproductive blame game. Rather than see this as a failure, we must see it as an opportunity to rebuild. When other countries found themselves in this kind of situation in the past, they have used the galvanizing power of disappointment to get down to work. At Atlanta 1996 Olympics, Team Great Britain won only one gold medal.


Returning home, the right questions were asked, and the necessary actions were taken. Four years later in Sydney, they returned with 11 gold out of 28 medals. In Beijing four years ago, they returned with 19 gold memdals out of 47, placing them in the fourth position.


Today, they are able to look back and say they have moved from ‘zeroes to heroes’. This is our chance. We can also do it. We must see this crisis as the necessary disequilibrium required for serious actions and drastic change. We will not allow this opportunity to pass”.

The Minister said that having being appointed Minister and chairman of National Sports Commission only two months to the Olympics, he had to learn quickly. ‘’I have not received a better lesson than in the last two weeks of London 2012 Olympics. I have learnt three key lessons.

1. Olympics medal is about hard cash. It is not a coincidence that the medals table appears to reflect the level of economic development of the countries.

But having the resources is one thing, making the right strategic investment is another. Team Great Britain largely owes its dramatic success to what is described as ‘’unprecedented financial investment” totaling up to more than £740 million over 15 years. The current annual spending on sports stands at £100 million. However, only 40% of this comes from the treasury, while the remaining 60% is lottery fund.


Conversely, Australia finished fourth in Sydney with 16 gold medals. In London, Australia has fallen outside the top 10 with 6 gold medals. Australians have blamed reduced funding for elite athletes and a lack of facilities at the grassroots levels.

He said that every medal is clearly projected and carefully planned for both in financial and technical terms. There is no short cut.

Medals are won by people who have worked hardest not by those who have prayed hard. ‘’We can only win medals by building systems that capable of producing medalists and champions not by selecting athletes that we hope can win medals