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I am fervently
asking God for the grace, to address this issue of restitution
adequately between now and October 1, 2010, when by the very special
grace of God, we would be celebrating our 50th anniversary as a nation.
I know from experience that genuine restitution bears with it some
degree of excruciating pain, and this is why human beings avoid it.

But believe me, I
also know that after the pain involved in restitution, not the fake
one, comes the gain – which usually is always of unquantifiable benefit
to all involved in the act of restitution.

No preparation to revive sports

To discontinue
reaping the fruits of shame, ineptitude, corruption, demonic covenants,
age falsification that is grossly affecting the development of millions
of youngsters, who are supposed to be groomed as Nigeria’s future
leaders on the platform of sports, restitution has to be done. It will
eliminate fraud, favouritism, moral decadence, drug abuse, violence,
winning at all cost, negligence and all other social vices that have
been sown as seeds in Nigerian sports. Lest I forget, the latest of
such evil, are the intense disdain, insult and disregard of the laws by
representatives of FIFA and the goon squad representing them in Nigeria.

Sunday, September 5
saw me in Abeokuta, capital of Ogun State, Nigeria, to watch the
opening game of the U-17 International football competition organised
by the Pepsi Academy of Nigeria, under the supervision of Kashimawo
Laloko. I was on my way back to Lagos after the opening ceremony to
watch the Nigeria versus Madagascar match, but became double-minded on
sighting a bus conveying players of the Liberty Professionals Academy
from Ghana, driving on the opposite side of the road towards Abeokuta.
I then had to make a choice between heading home to watch the Eagles,
hoping that they would be super this time around, or making a U-turn to
Abeokuta. I chose to make the U-turn, since I have uncompromisingly
committed myself to such age-grade grassroots football development. I
have no doubt that I made the right choice, but whether I derived
anything positive remains a big doubt.

Anomie and too much pressure

Apart from the poor
level of officiating at the games, there was so much pressure on the
young lads from the coaches. The question is – when do we begin to see
exceptional dribbling skills, ball juggling and through passes,
displayed by our age grade football players? The foundation we are
laying is very weak. I left the M.K.O. stadium, feeling very
uncomfortable and disappointed. I kept on asking myself the question –
“where do we go from here”?

Another observation
had to do with the number children spectators – for whom these football
matches are organised. I was shocked to see a population of less than
100 and a 100 adults. Well, was this new to me? No, I saw a worse
situation in Lagos during the recent Lagos Youth Championship football
competition. The question is why should this be so? What can be
responsible for empty stadiums during age-grade football competitions?
The answers are simple and several. No right thinking parent for
instance will allow his/her ward go watch matches in Nigerian stadiums
that have been taken over by social miscreants and other forms of
gangsters. It is no longer strange to those who are bold enough to risk
going to any stadium in Nigeria to see drugs being hawked, sold and
consumed with such reckless abandon, even in the presence of security
agents.

I got home to be confronted by another anomie; the FIFA U-17 Women’s
World Cup, going on in Trinidad and Tobago. Nigeria played against
North Korea. As a patriotic Nigerian and football coach, I decided to
watch the game, but forgot absolutely that my daughters, at home on
holidays would also watch. It would have been okay if the commentators
had not mentioned the ages of the “women” representing Nigeria. One of
them was my student in the Brazilian Soccer School, about 5 years ago
and she was introduced aged 14. One of my daughters watching the match
is an SS3 student; what kind of example are we setting for the
young(er) ones? May God forgive this nation? Please say a very loud
Amen.