Club Owner Sends SOS To Amosun; Over Use Of Dipo Dina Stadium

The lull in sporting activities in Ijebu Ode and its environs is giving sports lovers of the ancient city a serious cause for concern and they are calling on Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State, Nigeria to come to their  rescue.

A check at the Otunba Dipo Dina International Stadium which was a beehive of activities before the  present administration has become a shadow of itself .

Investigation revealed that many football clubs in the area  used to  train and play their matches at the stadium, paying a token fee to the government  for the maintenance of the stadium and its facilities. But club owners have stopped patronising the stadium after the increment of the fees by the management of the stadium.

One of the club owners, who pleaded for anonymity, appealed to Governor Amosun to  fulfil his pre-election promise to  use sports to engage the youth of Ijebu Ode and its environs positively.

“This is a terrible situation for us in Ijebu land, considering the fact that the Commissioner for Sports, Gbenga Otenuga, is an Ijebu man.

“Before this administration came on board, the stadium was always bubbling with sporting activities as many football clubs across the six local governments in the Ijebu land always come to train and play their matches in the stadium.

“We saw this as a good development and as a means of  discouraging the youth from engaging in criminal activities.

“We use to pay N2, 500 to train four times in a month or  pay N5, 000 monthly to train daily. When this administration came on board, the fee was increased to N5, 000 for two hours training. This is too much for us.

“I’m appealing to Governor Amosun to use his good office to prevail on the management of the stadium to reduce the fee.

“We have made several appeals to the Commissioner for Sports, but they  have not yielded positive result. Since the increment of the fee, there is low patronage at the stadium,” said the coach.

P.M.Sports, however, made several efforts to get the Commissioner to comment on issue  the issue, but  they all proved abortive.

— Abiodun Onafuye, Ijebu Ode