By Nicholas Dechi
GOVERNOR Hyacinth Alia of Benue promised to give football adequate attention because it was a unifying factor.
Alia stated this when he inspected the ongoing rehabilitation of the Aper Aku Stadium on Tuesday in Makurdi.
The governor said that football had the potential of bringing people together regardless of their various differences.
He added that football has huge economic benefits if properly harnessed.
“Football is a treasure, and where your treasure is, your heart will be. Football is my treasure.
“Benue has the DNA for football. It has produced great footballers who are scattered across various teams in and outside Nigeria,” Alia said.
He said that he was satisfied with the space of work that was going on at the stadium, stating that he was confident that the contractor would deliver the job on time.
Also, the President, Nigerian Football Federation (NFF), Ibrahim Gusau, urged the contractor to renovate the stadium to meet international standards so that even international competitions could be hosted there.
Gusau said that he was very impressed with the quality of work done so far at the stadium.
He advised state governors to ensure they revive the Governor’s Cup in order to harness young talents.
Meanwhile, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Monimichelle Company, Ebi Egbe, pledged that he would not compromise standards, stating that he was renovating the stadium to meet international standards.
Egbe said that the Confederation of African Football (CAF) was very serious with field test certification, and maintaining the field cost a lot of money.
“If a team fails to maintain its field properly, it will fail the field test and will not be certified.
“Maintenance of the field is supposed to be done annually,” Egbe said.
He said that he was in Benue for a serious business, stressing that he would give it all the attention it desired. (NAN)
