SWAN faults National Sports Festival’s January date

Photo: SWAN president, Honour Sirawo
By George Aluo

The nation’s sports writer’s body, SWAN has faulted the early January date for the National Sports festival to be hosted by Edo state.

SWAN in a communique issued after its expanded National Executive Council meeting in Abuja urged the sports ministry, Edo State government and the Presidential Task Force on Covid 19 to harmonize and come up with a suitable date.

Below is the Communique made a available to newstap.com.ng

COMMUNIQUE

Being Communique issued at the end of an Expanded National Executive Council (NEC) Meeting of the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) at Hotel Reno, Abuja on December 11, 2020.

1.    NEC approves that the National Secretariat utilize the land given to SWAN, in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to build a permanent secretariat for the Association.

2.    NEC directs states where the tenure of the Executive Committees have expired, to conduct elections on or before March 31, 2021. Some of the states include Cross River, Edo, Enugu, Ebonyi, Osun, Ekiti, Ogun, Lagos, Sokoto, Katsina, Zamfara, Gombe, Borno, Taraba, Adamawa, Nasarawa, Plateau, Niger and Benue.

3.    NEC applauds the collaborative initiative of the Vice President, North West, Idris Malikawa with the British Council to enable members acquire diploma and post graduate diploma in journalism and urges the National Secretariat to adopt the model as part of its capacity building programmes.

4.    NEC endorses five key areas for the application of the FIFA Relief Fund given to SWAN through the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) in line with the spelt out guidelines. These include; (a) Welfare, (b) Capacity Building, (c) Secretariat Project, (d) Payment of Secretariat Staff and (e) Operating Cost.

5.    NEC expresses doubt over the January 3 to 18, 2021 dates for the 20th National Sports Festival (NSF) announced by the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development, and urges the Ministry, Edo State Government and the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on Covid-19 to harmonize on a suitable date for the Festival.

6.    Following appeals from respected Nigerians and critical stakeholders, NEC extends a hand of fellowship to misinformed sports journalists willing to return to SWAN and urges them to register through the national platform provided for such.

7.    NEC observed one minute silence in memories of veteran sports journalists Bisi Lawrence (BizLaw), Muyiwa Daniel, Henrietta Ukigwe and others who passed on recently.