– says agency should be given a “decent burial” because it’s not useful to Ondo state football
Ondo State Government on Thursday frowned at the situation of the three clubs being sponsored in the local league, saying it would do the needful to make them meet the yearnings and aspirations of the people and the government.
Receiving report of the three man Committee set up to look into how best to run the clubs in his Office, Commissioner for Youth Development and Sports, Mr. Saka Yusuf Ogunleye assured that the recommendations of the Committee will be implemented “as soon as possible.”
This was contained in a statement by Mr Sunday Ajibola, Press Officer of the ministry.
The commissioner said: “We were compelled to set up this Committee following the endless crises the government is encountering over the Sunshine Stars Football club since we assumed office.
The past administration was running Sunshine Stars with N100 million monthly, yet the players were owed thirteen months salaries.
The team owes LMC N13 million.
Recently, the world soccer governing body FIFA wrote us, saying we are indebtedness to the tune N23million.
It may interest you to know that Sunshine Stars players are some of the best enumerated in the country, this is the only football team in Nigeria being administered by an Agency, yet the team is always fighting to escape relegation. This season that has just ended we are 18th on the log.
Despite the huge financial commitment of the government, the club cannot boast of a bus, we hire vehicles to away matches”
He assured that the government is ready to effect the change that the people expected.
His words: “The government is ready to take every necessary step to bring about changes to the teams. Sunshine Stars must be brought back to winning ways, Rising Stars has to live up to being the breeding ground for Sunshine Stars and Sunshine Queens will produce national stars as before.
From next season, Sunshine Queens would play their home matches at the Akure Sports Stadium.”
Earlier, the Chairman of the Committee, Barrister Gbenga Adesioye said the committee was set up July 14th with terms of reference to advise government on how best to run the teams; and how to get the best results for the three teams under the management of ODSFA Sunshine Stars, Sunshine Queens and the feeders team Rising Stars.
According to him, ODSFA was established to develop football in Ondo state without being registered as a legal entity with terms of reference, which is an aberration.
He added that ODSFA, apart from being an unregistered body, had failed to add any value to football development in the state, and therefore advised the government to give it a “decent burial,” because it is not useful to the Ondo state football.
“We recommend that ODSFA be scrapped.
– We also recommend that Sunshine stars FC, be managed by a-five management team;
– a professional management team should be set up for ODSFA;
– the Sports Council should be managing the Sunshine Queens;
– the feeders team should be used to discover and develop players for Sunshine Stars;
– that the government look into the debt profile of ODSFA and find a way of paying it;
– that the government should reduce the over bloated staff of ODSFA, support and fund football academy in the state.”
He said if all these recommendations are implemented, football would have a new direction in Ondo state.
The Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Dr (Mrs) Eshofonie commended the committee for a very good job, saying whoever is hungry for success will not allow things to remain stagnant.
She urged the government to as a matter of urgency implement the committee’s report.
The administrative Secretary of ODSFA, Mr, Akingbasote Oluwagbenga, described the committee’s report as comprehensive, adding that the non performance of the teams is affecting everybody in the agency. He thanked the committee for looking at the payment of the agency’s debts.
