By Ogenyi Ogenyi,Uyo
Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom has said the various stadia built in the state have been equipped to avail youths in the state capacity building opportunity to become national and international stars.
He also called on sports administrators to consider Akwa Ibom’s advantage of having four standard sport facilities and other environmental aspects in selecting the state for hosting sports competitions.
The governor who made this known while inaugurating the 10,000 capacity remodelled Uyo Township Stadium also called on athletes to maximize the use of the facilities scattered across the state to enhance their performance.
He expressed joy that his tenure witnessed tremendous facelift and maintenance of sports infrastructure across the state with the Akwa Ibom International stadium only recently approved by CAF as the only stadium in Nigeria suitable to host matches for the Super Eagles.
His support to the state owned premier football club, Akwa United has repositioned them into one of the feared football teams in the country while they won both the Nigerian Professional Football League and the Nigerian FA Cup for the first time within his tenure.
The governor expressed joy with the level of lift given the Uyo township stadium and commended the contractors and the state ministry of sports for their effoets.
Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Sports and Chairman of Akwa United Football Club, Elder Paul Bassey has described sports as one of the most successful sectors under the Governor Udom Emmanuel led administration.
According to him, the state has never witnessed the level of success in sports recorded during the present administration.
“Most times people forget what the Governor has done in Sports. Governor Udom Emmanuel in his eight years, has done more for sports than any other governor before him, Today we are living witnesses to the sports infrastructure that this state has, just recently, FIFA announced that the Super Eagles can only play in Uyo because no stadium in Nigeria fits their standard.” Bassey said.
He thanked the governor for providing the enabling infrastructure and environment for sports to thrive in the state and for making Akwa Ibom the sports capital of Nigeria through huge investment in the sector.
The FIFA/CAF Match Commissioner expressed hope that the incoming governor, Pastor Umo Eno will build on the foundation laid by the outgoing governor to continue to give Akwa Ibom a pride of place in sports development in the country.
