EXCLUSIVE: Sports Ministry Begs BBC Nigeria To Pull Down Story On Team Nigeria Kits

EXCLUSIVE: Sports Ministry Begs BBC Nigeria To Pull Down Story On Team Nigeria Kits

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…Blames Federation for Late Production
…Begs Editors To “Kill” Story

By Amaechi Agbo

Best Choice Sports can exclusively report that the ministry of youth and sports is on their kneels begging BBC Nigeria to pull down their report on Team Nigeria’s Birmingham 2022 delayed kits production.

This is coming in the wake of exposition as reported by this paper that the Team Nigeria kits for the Commonwealth Games were produced between Tuesday and Wednesday this week and part delivering was made on Thursday ahead of the opening ceremony by a UK kit manufacturer, MG Sportswear

A British sportswear manufacturer had to answer an SOS call from Nigeria’s Commonwealth Games team after they were left with no kit.

Gino Ruffinato, manager of the MG Sportswear firm, which is based in a town near host city Birmingham, at first thought it was a “wind-up” before launching his 14 staff into action.

An impeccable source has told this paper in confidence, that the sports ministry is making frantic efforts to get BBC Nigeria to pull down the story adding that the ministry’s “errand boys” are lobbying “mainstream media” to “kill the report”

“They are calling BBC Nigeria to step down the story. They are begging BBC to step down the story, yet they claimed it were some federations that engaged in the kits production.

Sports Minister, Sunday Dare has come under criticisms in handling of athletes kits in recent times

“The ministry claimed that they are investigating the federations, how can the ministry who superintends the federations can
be investigating them to know who did or not do what?

“The order for the production of the kits was made by the sports ministry, that I am sure. It is not the federation, it was the ministry who did it.

“They are calling editors to soft-pedal, (on the story) that the truth is that it’s the ministry that asked for the kits. Now if you claim it was a federation, why would a federation demand for 200 kits and tracks? If the federations are doing kits, are they different from the one the sports ministry is giving them?

“Are they supposed to be looking different from what the ministry is giving them, that is the question. They are begging people to soft-pedal and the one that happens in Oregon, (World Athletics Championship) was ministry’s fault. They have to use AFN Secretary to go and lie,” the source said

In a swift reaction, the sports ministry through an unsigned release shared on social media by the Media Aide to the Sports Minister, Kola Daniel, denied culpability in the show shame.

The release, unedited, reads: About 300 Team Nigeria Kits were delivered over two weeks ago and have since be (sic) issued to almost all the athletes.

Nigeria name was wrongly spelt in the kits worn by her athletes at the 2022 World Athletics Championship in Oregon USA

These kits which are the general kits procured by the Ministry of Youth and Sports Development, as is the practice, have since been issued to the athletes. These include track suits, house wears, sneakers, face caps, back packs, trolley bags, shorts, and ceremonial wears.

Team Nigeria athletes have since been donning them in Birmingham as was evident at Thursday night’s opening ceremony and other team functions.

However, the competition kits for each federation differ. Each federation produces specific competition kits for its athletes.

The Ministry is aware that federations have their own arrangements with different manufacturers with different delivery times and expectations which is being monitored very closely.

We hope this clarification helps to put the matter in perspective so that all distractions to Team Nigeria athletes and officials are avoided.

FMYSD

Questions Begging For Answers:

Which federations asked for their kits to be produced in Birmingham during the competition?

Why will a federation want to do their apparel differently from the ministry’s specification for them to wear?

How would the federation want two hundred kits and four hundred badges, how many are they on that list?.- how many athletes traveled from each federation? from what is gathered there are 94 athletes and 21 officials in Team Nigeria Camp in Birmingham, what are they doing with two hundred kits and four hundred badges?

Why did the Sports ministry under Sunday Dare allow this ignominy to befall the country after the shame in the just concluded 2022 World Athletics Championship in Oregon USA where Nigeria name was conspicuously wrongly spelt on the kits?

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