“The only thriving business in town is the business of politics, which has drawn us more condemnation and opprobrium than grace. Our elections are marred by rigging and governance is not dignified. Despite all their local political challenges, Kenya was able to redeem their image before the world”.
BY ZAINAB SULEIMAN OKINO
The silence from Nigeria following the conclusion of the World Athletics Championship in Tokyo last week is a loud statement on the state of sports in Nigeria compared with the shining examples from other African countries. Whether you are a sports enthusiast or a casual observer, it was a sobering moment for Nigerians as we watched with envy the exploits of our African compatriots on a global stage of sports, carting away medals and other intangibles in a blaze of glory. With the exception of Tobi Amusan, Olympic record holder who came second in the 100-metre hurdles, Nigeria would have been left high and dry at the Tokyo event.
Coming shortly after the D’Tigress’ victory celebration in the final AfroBasket title in Côte d’Ivoire recently, it is rather shocking that Nigeria fell short in the athletics championship and is now struggling for World Cup qualification while waiting for others. The irony of the D’Tigress’ victory shouldn’t be lost on us: the victory came solely through their personal efforts, not because Nigeria was there for them. Nigeria has always done a shoddy job mobilising sports personalities for competitions locally or globally.
Meanwhile, at the end of the World championship, Kenya came second in the medal table with seven gold medals, two silver, and two bronze, next only to the USA, the traditional leader in athletics. The Kenyans are well-known for their staying power in long-distance races and used the 2025 Tokyo Athletics to consolidate, despite the fact that some of their winners such as Faith Kipyegon is 31 years old and a mother, and Faith Beatrice Chebet is married too.
The surprise of the tournament is the little-known Southern African country Botswana, which came fifth in the championship. They overcame a false start and disqualification of Letsile Tebogo, Olympic 200-metre champion, in the men’s 100 metres to beat the USA in the 4×400 relay race, the first for any African country, with the redemptive stride of a new sensation in 21-year-old Colleen Kebinatshipi, who took the last lap to coast to victory.
Yet Nigeria, the ‘giant of Africa’ which used to lead Africa in the world of athletics, was not close to any form of accomplishment in such an important event. Nigeria was number 27 on the medal table. When Tobi Amusan complained in a social media post about her inadequate kits before the event, she was derided by government social media defenders.
Talk is cheap, and it is a lot easier to mount a defense on social media than to prepare our sportsmen and sportswomen for world events. First, we wait for athletes mostly ‘made’ abroad before calling them to camp for any world event. Whereas talented young men and women abound all over the country, especially in rural areas waiting to be tapped and trained for global sporting events, we’d rather concentrate on picking Nigerians from European leagues to represent us in soccer competitions.
Additionally, and this is without prejudice to football, which is a uniting force for us as a people, at the detriment of individual sports which could earn us more medals, it remains the only game the government even cares about. Yet as against football where you need a whole ‘battalion’ to win a medal, athletics projects individual talents, collective glory, and international recognition. Even that has since been relegated, leaving us crawling behind smaller but more determined nations.
The Tokyo disappointment highlights our degenerating posture in almost all aspects of our national lives: education, health, and mismanagement of resources. The only thriving business in town is the business of politics, which has drawn us more condemnation and opprobrium than grace. Our elections are marred by rigging and governance is not dignified. Despite all their local political challenges, Kenya was able to redeem their image before the world. What does Nigeria showcase to the world?
65 Years Of Snail-speed
On the occasion of our 65th birthday as an independent country, Nigeria is not yet out of the woods. Its celebration is now more of a routine than a reflection of exceptionalism and excellence. At a press conference held to mark the event, Minister of Information and National Orientation Mohammed Idris revealed President Bola Tinubu’s achievements such as renewing hope and touching lives through landmark reforms.
Highlighting the administration’s achievements so far, Idris said trade surpluses were expanding with more contributions from the non-oil sector, while inflation and food prices were on the decline. External reserves, he added, were “eloquent testimony that we are on the right track.”
However, many were not convinced. They cited our slow post-independence progress and the present economic hardship as unenviable and not worthy of celebration. It is true that the creative endeavours and resilience of many Nigerians have put a few Nigerians on the global map. That is, however, due to their personal efforts without government support rather than government-driven development efforts.
On the eve of this year’s independence, armed robbers exercised their control over the populace. They invaded the upscale Katampe district to snatch the precious life of a 29-year-old journalist and Arise correspondent, Somtochukwu Maduagu. Some years ago, assassins invaded the same Katampe neighborhood and snuffed the life out of a young celebrity chef. No arrests have been made since then.
While we hope Sommie’s killers, whether robbers or assassins, will be found and punished, it is disheartening that armed robbery is returning to our neighborhoods just when we thought it had been replaced with kidnapping, ritual killings, internet fraud, and banditry. In other words, instead of our vices reducing through concerted efforts, a new way of robbing us of joy is being devised to increase our woes.
If a massive estate in an expensive neighborhood like Katampe district in the FCT can be so vulnerable; and people killed this way without much intervention from the police, one wonders what is going on in high-density, low-income settlements that are difficult to access. For the immediate and media family of the deceased Somtochukwu, there is nothing to cheer for in Nigeria’s 65 years as a nation.
…Zainab Suleiman Okino (FNGE) chairs the Blueprint Editorial Board. She is a syndicated columnist and can be reached via zainabokino@gmail.com
