Fashola Inaugurates LOC For 2012 National Sports Festival

Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State has inaugurated a 29-member Local Organising Committee, LOC for the 2012 National Sports Festival, NSF to be hosted by Lagos in November.

The LOC is chaired by the Deputy Governor of Lagos, Mrs Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, while the Vice Chairman is the Commissioner for Youth, Sports and Social Development, Mr. Enitan Oshodi. Inaugurating the committee at the State House, Ikeja, Lagos, South-west Nigeria on Monday, Fashola said sponsorship of the festival would be purely private sector driven, saying that Lagos is ready to host a successful festival, which will surpass the last edition held in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

The governor stated that there has been too much government’s presence in sports administration in the country, adding that it is time sports is left for the private sector to handle.

According to Fashola, government should only focus on regulatory role and allow the private sector to drive the development of the games through its own enterprise.

The governor stated that the decision to involve professionals, who have excelled in the corporate, social and political world into the LOC, is to ensure that this year’s festival surpass the last one.

“Our strategy will be different, we will use our strongest asset, whch is our people. We would also involve the private sector. The inclusion of Commissioners from the side of the government is to enable easy and speedy access to the government in terms of logistics,” he said.

Fashola added that the resolve of the government to improve the sporting fortunes of the state guided the decision of the government to accept the hosting right of the 2012 Festival.

According to him, the aim of the state government was to replicate the success story of public and private partnership in security management, waste management as well as infrastructural development in the sporting life of the state.

Members of the committee are the Commissioners for Information and Strategy, Comrade Kayode Opeifa, Transport, Aderemi Ibirogba, Health, Dr. Jide Idris, while Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Dr. Femi Hamzat and Tourism and Intergovernmental Relations, Disu Holloway were also included.

Others are Commissioner of Police, Yakub Alkali; Chief Molade Okoya-Thomas, Tony Elumelu, Chief Ademola Seriki and Senator Olorunnimbe Mamora.

Responding on behalf of the LOC, Orelope-Adefulire assured that the committee would work hard to ensure a successful hosting of the sports festival in November.

 —Kazeem Ugbodaga