Academy collaborates with NSC to transform Liberty Stadium dumping site
One of the National Sports Commission’s cardinal objectives is to boost sporting infrastructures across the nation. The Commission under the leadership of Mallam Shehu Dikko is not just committed to putting in place new facilities, but ensuring that the existing ones are regularly upgraded and maintained.
Triple 44 Academy has moved to collaborate with the commission in this regard. CEO of the Academy Olatunji Okuku has been holding strategic meetings with the NSC chairman in a bid to transform a dumping site at the Liberty Stadium into a world-class pitch.
If the proposal sees the light of the day, Triple 44 Academy will put in place two pitches (an 11-a-side and 7-a-side) at a site hitherto more of a refuse dump site in a build-and-donate arrangement.
Speaking in the wake of the meeting, Dikko said, “Our plans to spark a sports infrastructure revolution in the country is non-negotiable. I have maintained that it is very embarrassing that we have only one international-standard pitch in this country. So if, God forbid, Uyo can no longer host our international matches, we will be seriously embarrassed. It means that we may play our home matches outside Nigeria. So anything that will boost the quality of our sporting infrastructure will be encouraged. This is not a government project. We will involve the private sector.”
He is of the opinion that the quest to regularly discover fresh talents from the grassroots will not be a reality without the necessary sporting facilities.
“If the pitches are not there, how will you discover the talents? We need these pitches all over. But we will not just emphasize on having pitches, they must be properly maintained. There should be some regulations that make it mandatory to have proper maintenance plans in place before a facility is erected”, he added.
Okuku spoke about the driving force behind the gesture.
“This is a dumping site that was once used by kidnappers. I saw this site lying fallow and feel that it should be made useful to the abundant talents we have at the grassroots. If it is approved, we will build a standard 11-a-side pitch and another 7-a-side training pitch with stands and donate them to the Commission for public use. We will be using them as well, but they will still be available to the public”, he said.
