Opinion: Rt.Hon. Orji, Leading An Economic, Health And Infrastructural Revolution Through Sports.

By Uche Aguoru

Sports is an area of human interaction where respect for rules, teamwork, and fair play are the norm. Sports include all forms of physical exercise, whether local or imported, amateur or professional, casual or organized. Despite its critical importance in the economic, social, and physical development of the youth population, it is an area that has remained underdeveloped and underfunded, especially in Africa.

In Nigeria today so many talented and promising sportsmen and women have died with their talents and dreams while those who struggled to survive have remained undeveloped or underdeveloped, unknown and poor, entrapped, and struggling in another vocation not naturally carved for them, not because of lack of finance or interest but simply for lack of infrastructure.

Many football talents who would have ended up in the back of their compounds playing monkey posts or turn to street urchins today are big names in international soccer and other sports simply because they found themselves abroad where they have access to sporting infrastructure and training that sharpened their naturally endowed skills.

As a youth ambassador who has placed a premium on the development of the youthful generation, the speaker of the Abia State House Of Assembly Rt. Hon. Chinedum Orji, having understudied the pivotal importance of developing this very important sector has undertaken the construction of mini stadia across so many local governments so as to ensure that talented sportsmen and women have facilities to activate their sporting talents and improve on their skills.

Rt. Hon, Chinedum Orji understands that sports promote youth development, environment, governance, peace, friendship, understanding, tolerance and abhors class discrimination, he is also aware that apart from education the only true weapon of social cohesion is sports, and people cannot effectively develop in any area of sports without adequate training and infrastructure, in an effort to ensure that talented youths develop and pursue skills in sports, he had embarked on the construction and equipment of mini stadia in Umuahia North, Umuahia South and Ikwuano with Ikwuano LGA hosting 2 stadia, Umuahia South LGA has 3 stadia at different stages of construction and Umuahia North has 4 mini stadia with 2 sited in Ibeku and 2 in Ohuhu.

The construction of these facilities has since commenced with about four of the facilities at 50% completion.
The facilities which were sited at Isieke, St Stephen's, Ubakala, Umuokpara, Ohuhu, Ikwuano, and Olokoro had that of Isieke, St. Stephens, Ubakala, Ikwuano at 50% completion while the construction of the Williams memorial secondary school Afugiri mini stadia just took off, that of Ohuhu Community Secondary School, Amaogwugwu will commence soon.

With the assurances from Rt. Hon. Chinedum Orji that all the projects will be completed and fully functional on or before December 2021, the chain effect will no doubt enhance the economic, infrastructural and physical health of the people, it will keep many youths engaged and off the streets, it also has the potentials of developing and producing world class talents in football and other areas of sporting activities.

In the words of the famous Roman poet Decimus Junius Juvenalis, “mens sana in corpore sano – a sound mind in a sound body”. In other words, sports activities can help improve our minds and self-esteem and engender a general sense of well-being.

Aguoru
Writes From Umuahia