Wasteful and Unnecessary: Stakeholders Slam AFN Leadership Over Botswana Trip

Athletics stakeholders in Nigeria have expressed outrage after Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) president Tonobok Okowa and secretary general Isreal Inwang joined Team Nigeria’s contingent to the Lefika International Relays in Gaborone, Botswana.

The meet, scheduled for March 26, is organized by a local club in Botswana, much like Nigeria’s MTN CHAMPS which is run by the private outfit Making of Champions.

Critics argue that the AFN leadership has no business accompanying athletes to what is essentially a qualifying competition, describing the trip as wasteful and unnecessary.

What has further angered stakeholders is the approval of funds for the trip by the National Sports Commission (NSC), an agency that has consistently preached accountability.

The same NSC that sanctioned millions of naira for secondary school students has been accused of neglecting elite athletes, many of whom are still owed the meagre training grants the Commission is paying.

At the Commonwealth Games camp in Asaba, athletes were given paltry and dehumanising allowances, raising questions about the Commission’s priorities.

Observers say the decision to bankroll the AFN president and secretary general’s trip to Botswana exposes a troubling double standard.

While Nigeria’s athletes continue to struggle with inadequate support, administrators appear to enjoy privileges that add little value to performance on the track.

The controversy has left many in the athletics community ‘flabbergasted,’ with calls for greater scrutiny of how sports funds are allocated as we as an orientation course for Sports Administrators on elite athletes’ management.

As Team Nigeria departs for Gaborone with hopes of securing World Relay Championship qualification, the spotlight remains firmly on the federation’s leadership and the NSC’s spending choices.