Senator Shehu Sani has revealed how Nigerian officials allegedly rejected olympic jersey kits donated by renown sports brand, PUMA.
According to Sani, PUMA donated the kits worth $2.7 million to Nigeria alongside financial reward for athletes in the ongoing Tokyo Olympics.
The Former Kaduna senator further disclosed that Nigerian officials turned down the donation and instead opted to use public funds to purchase kits from somewhere else.
Sani’s comments are coming shortly after Chukwuebuka Enekwechi, who is representing Nigeria in Shotput at the ongoing Tokyo Olympics, posted a video of himself washing his jersey stating that it was the only one he received from the country’s officials.
Sani wrote on social media; “These are the $2.7 Million kits freely donated to Nigeria by @PUMA and an offer of financial reward to our medal wining Athletics, which was rejected by Our officials; They instead used Public funds to purchase from other sources;And now the embarrassment in Tokyo.”
Typically Nigerian official mode of operation. They will reject free offers that leave not much cut for them but instead waste public funds on much inferior materials where they would derive much cut for themselves. The government must probe this. it reminds of a critical national project to be financed by UNICEF but co-supervised by a federal ministry; UNICEF appointed consultant was asked by ministry officials who demanded more than half of the honorarium to be received by the consultant; the consultant refused; in consequence the ministry withdraw interest in the project which UNICEF eventually cancelled. Government officials are the most corrupt element in Nigerian space. Nigeria must probe the shame of Tokyo 2020 including the embezzlement that these officials committed.
That’s the answer of putting square peg into a round hole. If really the officials rejected such important equipment and mobilization, it simply means the officials don’t like sport because they’re novice in the game therefore Lacks interest.
They hated giving a more qualified worker but instead they put their own, instructing him “to do what others are doing”.
THAT’S FAILURE.