By Timothy Omobude
The National Chairman of the Nigeria Football Supporters Club, (NFSC), Rev. Samuel Ikpea, has saluted Edo State Governor, Mr Godwin Obaseki, for taking it as a priority to support the newly-promoted Nigerian National League (NNL) side, Dynamite Force Football Club, with N25m and a Coaster bus.
The Edo-born, NFSC National Chairman gave this commendation while speaking to journalists in Benin shortly after the governor presented the gifts to the club.
He said that all other governors in Nigeria should emulate Gov. Godwin Obaseki and his deputy, Comrade Philip Shuaibu, as they have proven to the world that they are the best sport-loving governor and deputy in the country.
He said the Governor has become a blessing to the world of sports, especially female football, for his unrelenting support to the national teams including the Flamingoes and the Super Falconets with obvious positive results.
Both teams had camped in Edo state as the Governor deployed sports as a channel to send messages to young girls in the state to dissuade them from traveling abroad through illegal routes.
“This governor is sport-loving and he has continued to give the necessary assistance to the national teams and state club teams . He gave the Super Falconets N5m after they defeated the Besetsana of South Africa to qualify for the FIFA U-20 Women World Cup in France and now he is giving Dynamite Force FC N25m and a brand new coaster bus”, he explained.
“For a state governor to give this kind of help to a club at NNL level, it calls for encomiums, Rev. Ikpea added.
He equally thanked the state Governor for restoring the lost sports glory in Edo state even as he looked forward to more supporters from Edo that would join other states and international chapters of the NFSC to cheer the Super Eagles to victory at the FIFA World Cup in Russia later this year.
Rev. Ikpea also recalled that Gov. Obaseki was the only governor in Nigeria that hosted the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) President, Amaju Pinnick, after he was appointed into CAF and FIFA respectively last year.
He noted that this gesture highlighted the overall interest of the governor in sports.
Rev. Ikpea added that as the NFSC National chairman, he has been assisting his state by mobilising the club’s national supporters as the twelfth man in cheering the country’s national teams to victory as well as upgrading Bendel insurance supporters club to national level.
