President of the Senate, Senator David Mark has charged the Super Eagles to rise to the occasion and defeat their Guinean counterparts in tomorrow’s Nation’s Cup qualifier.
Senator Mark also redeemed the N1.6 million pledge he made to all the 32 gold medallists in the just concluded All Africa Games in Maputo, Mozambique.
?
?
Senator Mark, who spoke when he inaugurated the Senate Committee on Sports and Social Development in Abuja said “it would be a shame if Nigeria fails to qualify for the 2012 Nations Cup.
“We should therefore come out enmasse to cheer the Eagles to victory. We should live up to our billings as the giant of Africa. Sports is a unifying factor in our country, Nigeria and all around the world. “We must explore the avenue of sports to unite our people, love ourselves and redeem our image abroad.”
?
?
He said the Super Eagles must put in their best and make the nation proud.
“I will be there with other well meaning Nigerians to cheer you up, we must troop out enmasse to support the Eagles” Mark stated.
?
?
To further enhance the performance of the team, Senator Mark counselled the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) to allow merit determine the selection of players.
He frowned at the politicisation of sports, saying, “the only best players irrespective of state of origin should represent the nation in local and international competitions.
?
?
“We must always allow best hands to play at the competitions. We should not allow politics into our sports especially football. When we do well, the glory comes to Nigeria as a nation.” he maintained.
He charged all stakeholders to put all necessary tools in place in order to achieve the desired results in sports.
Earlier, the chairman of the Senate committee on Sport and Social Development, Senator Adamu Ibrahim Gumba assured that his committee would continue to sponsor appropriate legislation that would promote sports development in the country.
?