Board members of the 31 sports federations purportedly dissolved by Mr. Sunday Dare, the Minister of Youth and Sports Development, have given him (Dare) 48 hours ultimatum to reverse the decision or Nigeria be at risk of being banned from participating in the forthcoming Tokyo Olympic Games
In a meeting attended by representatives of the 31 sports federations purportedly dissolved by Dare on Friday, held in Abuja on Tuesday, the federations rejected the Board’s arbitrary and untimely dissolution of duly and democratically elected Federations.
In a communiqué issued at the end of their meeting and made available to Core Reporters, the Board members also condemned and rejected the establishment of caretaker committees over duly and democratically elected sports Federations whose tenures were yet to expire.
According to the statement, “The members unequivocally stated that on no account will the Caretaker Committees be recognized by the International Bodies of the various Sports Federations in place of the duly elected Boards.
“The Minister of Youth and Sports and the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development lied when they claimed that the tenures of the Boards have expired.
“Board elections were held on June 13, 2017, and the inauguration into office was done on July 10, 2017, for a 4-year tenure. Therefore the tenure will expire on July 10, 2021, and not April 30, 2021, when the Federations were dissolved.
“We wish to inform the public that no provision in the Code of Governance empowers the Minister to dissolve Boards of duly and democratically elected Federations and no legislation, law, regulation or instrument empowers the Minister or the Ministry of Youth and Sports Development to set up Caretaker Committees.
“We Federations hereby give the Minister a 48 hour- ultimatum within which he is to rescind and reverse all unlawful pronouncements he made over the dissolution of duly appointed Board members of Sports Federations or face appropriate reactions from the Federations,” the statement concluded.
Core Reporters report that the board members urged Dare and his cohorts bent on destroying sports in the nation to desist from jeopardizing the youths especially Nigeria’s sportsmen and women, by putting the country at risk of being banned from participating in the forthcoming Tokyo Olympic Games.
Meanwhile, they (Board Members) insisted that sports Caretaker Committees can never be allowed to replace duly elected Boards whose tenures are yet to expire, while maintaining that they will do all in their powers to stop autocracy in sports, as is being carried out by the minister, Dare.
