12th May, 2017
By Kazeem Ugbodaga
The Lagos State Government on Friday said it has earmarked N12.6 billion for sports facilities and development this year.
Special Adviser to the Governor on Sports and Chairman, Lagos State Sports Commission, Deji Tinubu disclosed this at a ministerial press conference at the Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre, Secretariat, Alausa in Ikeja, Lagos, Southwest Nigeria.
Tinubu said the government was committing N9.6 billion on sports facilities this year in order to boost sports in the state.
He added that N3 billion had also been earmarked for the development of sports in the state in a bid to ensure that Lagos ranked top in sporting development in the country.
On the National Stadium, the special adviser said the state government was willing to acquire the stadium and had bid for it, but he refused to disclose how much the government is bidding for the stadium, saying that “there is no money for the bidding.”
Tinubu also refused to comment on the controversy surrounding the planned takeover of the stadium by the state government, but lamented the dilapidated nature of the stadium.
He stated that government was interested in the stadium and that when given the nod by the federal government, it would develop the facility and made it the toast and the best stadium in the country.
According to him, Nigerians would want to see the Super Eagles play at the National Stadium once again, saying that government was ready to transform the massive edifice once it got the go ahead.
However, Tinubu said the Lagos State Sports Commission Bill passed into law by the State House of Assembly would “allows us to be more professional, more specific, more dedicated, dynamic and able to keep up with current and evolving sporting trends.”
He said the Lagos State Sports Commission had the vision to engage more schools in organized sports and create a standardized school sports calendar as well as create a database for gifted secondary school athletes in Basketball, Volleyball, Handball, Athletics, Wrestling, Table-tennis and Taekwondo.