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There is nothing
good about poverty. It is evil and it is a curse. But we must not see
poverty from a myopic perspective, which in itself, would amount to a
type of poverty. Poverty is not just the state of not having enough
money to take care of basic needs, such as housing, clothing, food, or
the inability to own a car – be it firsthand, second, third, fourth or
fifth.

There could also be
spiritual poverty, intellectual poverty, scientific poverty, artistic
poverty and what I call philosophical poverty.

I have been in
England for the past 12 days, during which I have visited Telford,
Coventry, Birmingham and now settled down in London for a couple of
days, before moving on to Leeds, Worchester and Manchester. I have seen
enough of grassroots sports developmental projects and facilities and
heard so much about the shenanigan referred to as grassroots sports
development in my country, Nigeria. Beloved Nigerians, we are about
three decades behind – and that is being very modest.

I have seen pre- and
post-match analyses by sports writers and retired or
ex-international/club footballers that made me feel very sorry for our
so-called analysts, who pride themselves as veterans or ex-this,
ex-that. Poor guys. I make bold to say that the sad situation in this
massively blessed nation can be likened to the proverbial state of ‘a
one-eyed man is king in the land of the blind’. Q.E.D.

The truth is that
sports in all its ramification has gone scientific and everything about
sports has become so dynamic that sports men and women in countries
where sports is religiously administered as serious business, have also
gone scientific and forward-looking. Hence, they realise the fact that
it is necessary for them to be constantly equipped with up-to-date
information. This, I am afraid, is not the situation in this great
nation. Why?

One of the reasons
as far as I am concerned has to do with poverty, as experienced and
exhibited by the majority of Nigerian sports writers. People who have
been mandated – albeit, inadvertently ‑ by sports-loving Nigerians, to
inform, educate, entertain, empower and enlighten millions of passionate
Nigerian sports lovers. People, who are expected to lead the fight
against corruption and other forms of demonic activities of enemies of
Nigerian sports are, unfortunately, not aware of the power, influence
and authority they possess individually and collectively. This is why I
agree absolutely with Tayo Balogun that the Sports Writers Association
of Nigeria (SWAN) is nothing better than a goon squad, composed of
nincompoops. Let me, however, state with all due respect and sense of
responsibility that there are still a few credible, bold, committed,
responsible and proactive ones who are God-fearing and will not soil
their names and reputation, no matter the circumstance.

But like in
politics, majority, it is said, wins the vote. Here lies the danger with
sports journalism in Nigeria today. Most of our so-called sports
writers are so impoverished that they lack the ability to gain the
respect of Nigerian athletes, coaches, managers and other sports
administrators, from the local government area councils to the National
Sports Commission (NSC), which remains an illegal body. Sports writers
avoid talking about the implications of such an illegality, or to the
National Olympics Committee. Apart from the state of financial poverty
majority of them find themselves in, they also lack the required
knowledge, skills and, in most cases, the experience that would bestow
on them the respect accorded noble vocations like sports journalism.

So, wither the
power, influence and authority of sports journalists in Nigeria? How
come sports journalists are not reckoned with when it comes to
decision-making in Nigeria?

There is need for urgent intervention, I should think. This is part of saving sports in Nigeria.