By Following Nigeria’s disastrous outing at the Paris 2024 Olympics, veteran sports journalist Raymond Akparuere has called for sweeping changes in the leadership of the country’s sports federations, particularly the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN).
Akparuere criticized the AFN President, citing administrative failures, including the mishandling of Favour Ofili’s registration, which prevented her from competing in a qualified international event. He argued that individuals responsible for such embarrassing blunders should not be re-elected.
His remarks come after Malam Shehu Dikko, Chairman of the National Sports Commission (NSC), announced plans to reform governance structures in sports federations. Speaking on Channels Television’s SportsVille, Dikko emphasized that leaders with a history of failure should be disqualified from future elections.
“We want to reform the structure of the federations with a view to bringing in the right people to come and contest as presidents,” Dikko stated.
Akparuere echoed this stance, highlighting other logistical failures at the Olympics, including a Nigerian cyclist borrowing a bicycle from another country to compete. He insisted that not only the AFN leadership but also the heads of the Cycling and Boxing Federations should be barred from contesting future elections.
“Those responsible for our embarrassment at the Olympics should not be allowed near the election process,” he declared.
His call for change aligns with the findings of an investigative committee set up by former sports minister Senator John Owan Enoh, which implicated two AFN officials and recommended compensation for Ofili. Reform advocates now hope that new governance structures will prevent further mismanagement and usher in a new era of accountability in Nigerian sports.
