Can Philip Shaibu really deliver the NIS?

The current state of the main sports academy of Nigeria, the National Sports Institute, is anything but the citadel it should be.

A crumbled building

An installation whose central mission focuses on the leading advance of Nigeria in sports through research, exhibition of ideas and the practical application of these ideas to give a competitive advantage to the nation athletes.

For a nation that has the greatest convergence of the black race in Africa, with a clear abundance of talent, in recent times we have only managed to stumble with success in sports, instead of making deliberate jumps.

Although the escape route for sports federations in the country has been talent migration, benefiting from the novelty facilities and techniques available abroad, the NIS gradually addressed the darkness.

Today, the NIS is nothing more than a glorified technical school that produces graduates annually, if it achieves.

What maintains the NIS in operation is the great sand and the tenacity of the ‘students’ who only carry the torch, while they hope that one day their hard work is worth it.

Nis graduates take strange jobs in what is now a regressive sports industry, and those who cannot, end up chasing other interests outside their ecosystem.

It is clear that certification has little credibility; local or internationally.

Presidential Intervention

Perhaps that is why the recent appointment of a new DG for the institute was not a surprise or maybe anyone really cares.

On May 24, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu approved the appointment of Philip Shaibu, a former Vice Governor of the State of Edo, to direct a dying ship, from the dock to the open waters?

However, an important problem with political appointments in Nigerian sports is that beneficiaries are almost never prepared or qualified for the roles granted, and this does not inspire confidence.

Philip Shaibu could be competent with some things, but the reconstruction of an institution without rudder, which has diverted so far from its mission is not a badge that has yet won.

A football enthusiast, who has also defended the salary parity for women in sports, Philip Shaibu was in front and the center of the rebirth of sports in the state of Edo, and that is why he can take some credit.

However, the success was of short duration and obvious now is that the process was fundamentally defective.

While sports worldwide are a multimillionaire industry in some African countries, with Nigeria it is largely used for images washing and, in the best case, governments at several levels are also guilty of it.

A vivid instance was in November 2020 when Shaibu and the then president of NFF, Amaju Pinnick, tied their boots, equipped and broke the protocol to join the official training session of a Super Eagles.

The kickout was two days before a qualifier of the Africa Cup of Nations against Sierra Leone.

The main professionals of the team, those based in Europe, were baffled by the bad judgment and lack of ethics.

Unfortunately, they were also vilified after the result of the qualifier that ended 4-4.

What lessons Shuaibu learned? Apparently not much because a few years later, he named himself at the state -owned football club squad during a league match.

Today, without the paraphernalia of its political position, which comes with the privilege of deep pockets to expel problems, how will the new Nis DG sailing a work that requires modern technocrats in an stunted industry?

Renewed hope?

Will the Nis really assume its role as the lighthouse of sports development and growth in Nigeria, under the new leadership?

The task requires updating the institution’s curriculum for all courses, re -training teachers, discussing and ratifying associations with similar institutions, global sports governing bodies and sports teams, at home and abroad.

The NIS will also have to underline its value through associations with local sports teams, federations and associations for the impact that must be updated.

Redefining the role that NIS must assume is a task that cannot be emphasized too much, but can your leadership deliver it and more?