Nigeria: Paris Olympics – Kofar-Soro accuses inquiry committee of thorough work

Former Katsina State Director of Sports, Alhaji Aliyu Kofar-Soro, has charged members of the seven-man inquiry committee set up to probe various negative statements made about the country during the 2024 Paris Olympics and Paralympics to put the country’s interests first.

In addition to failing to win a single medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics, Team Nigeria has also been embroiled in a number of scandals. These include female boxer Cynthia Ogunsemilore, who was banned from the women’s tournament after testing positive for a banned doping substance. There was also administrative incompetence that saw Favour Ofili denied a spot in the women’s 100m.

Speaking to Daily Trust yesterday, Kofar-Soro said he was glad that the shameful statement in Paris had not been swept under the carpet.

He also commended the Minister of Sports, Senator John Enoh, for carefully selecting some of the most knowledgeable and credible sports administrators in the country to conduct the inquiry.

The sports director therefore tasked the committee members to work hard to unravel the direct and indirect causes of the negative events that affected Team Nigeria’s training camp during the Paris Olympics.

He urged them to come up with meaningful recommendations that would have a positive impact on Nigerian sports.

“I would have been disappointed if the minister had not done this. The inquiry committee is a step in the right direction. We can no longer tolerate gross incompetence and abuse of power.

“The commission is made up of men of proven integrity who have the capacity to carry out the assignment. But they must be prepared to step on toes to come up with far-reaching recommendations.

“I also hope that they will be given enough time to carry out the important national mandate. More importantly, the ministry must act on the report when it is submitted. The recommendations should not be left on the shelf to gather dust,” Kofar-Soro said.

The seven-man committee, headed by a veteran sports journalist, Dr. Mumuni Alao, consists of Aliyu Mohammed, Hajia Rakiya Muhammed, Godwin Enakhena, Dr. Abubakar Ango and Christy Opara, while lawyer Victor Okangbe will act as secretary.

The committee will receive the powers during its inauguration tomorrow at the Media Centre of the MKO Abiola Stadium in Abuja