Nigeria’s Sports Minister SUNDAY DARE has sacked the leadership of the Nigeria House Project (NHP) Committee prior to next year’s Olympic and Paralympic Games in Tokyo.
The NHP Committee was reconstituted in December 2017 by the former Sports Minister SOLOMON DALUNG and was headed by IFEDAYO AKINDOJU, President of NIGERIA TENNIS FEDERATION, with factional President of the NIGERIA BASKETBALL FEDERATION, AHMADU MUSA KIDA, serving as co-chairman.
It is responsible for planning and organising the Nigeria hospitality house, a social aspect of the Olympic and Commonwealth Games.
It had launched its project for Tokyo 2020 at a special ceremony in Abuja in August.
As reported by Nigerian daily national newspaper Leadership, DARE announced the dissolution of the NHP’s top officials while meeting with the presidents, technical directors and secretary generals of national sports federations involved with Tokyo 2020 at the MOSHOOD ABIOLA NATIONAL STADIUM in Abuja.
He claimed that the dissolution would pave the way for a proper review of the social-cultural aspects of the Olympics.
“I received briefing amongst others on the activities of the Nigeria house, an initiative that will address the social aspect of the Olympics,” Dare was reported as saying by Leadership.
“The Ministry and the NOC (Nigeria Olympic Committee) shall look into the activities of this body with a view to re-positioning it.
“Pending the review, I directed the NOC to dissolve forthwith the leadership of the Nigeria house to allow for a proper review.”
DARE met with the national governing bodies to discuss their training plans and general preparations for Tokyo 2020.
“The Ministry of Youth and Sports development pushed the start button preparations for the journey to the Tokyo Olympics 2020,” he wrote in a post on Twitter.
In September, Dare welcomed key officials to Abuja as Nigeria prepares to welcome International Olympic Committee (IOC) President THOMAS BACH next month.
Mustapha Berraf, President of the ASSOCIATION OF NATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEES OF AFRICA (ANOCA), was among those to attend in the country’s capital.
Others to join included HABU GUMEL, the President of the NOC.
DARE stressed the importance of Bach’s visit, which will come in the build-up to Tokyo 2020.
GUMEL, also the treasurer of ANOCA and an IOC member since 2009, said that the visit was “very important” to Nigeria.
ANOCA’S headquarters is situated in Abuja.
