Poised to ensure a total turnaround of the sports sector in Ogun State, for the benefit of the teeming youth, the State House of Assembly has passed the new State Sports Commission law 2019 and State Sports Trust Fund Law, 2019 to further boost youth development.
The bills titled “HB No 025/OG/2019- A Bill for a law to provide for the Establishment of the Ogun State Sports Commission and for Connected Purposes” and “H.B No. 26/OG/2019- A Bill for a Law to Provide for the Establishment of the Ogun State Sports Trust Fund and for Connected Purposes” got the unanimous approval of lawmakers, at a plenary presided over by the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Olakunle Oluomo.
The passage of the bills was consequent upon the separate presentations of the reports of the House Committee on Youth, Sports and Employment Generation, led by Hon. Sola Adams, who later moved the motions for their adoption, seconded by Honourables Musefiu Lamidi and Bolanle Ajayi respectively and supported by all the lawmakers through a voice vote.
The Majority Leader thereafter moved the motion for the third reading of the bills, seconded by Musefiu Lamidi and Ganiyu Oyedeji respectively and supported by the Whole House, while the Acting Clerk, Deji Adeyemo did the third reading of the bills before the lawmakers.
Responding, Speaker Oluomo, who directed that the clean copies of the bills be transmitted to Governor Dapo Abiodun for his assent, said the passage of the two bills was a special gift to the youth of the State, whom he described as the critical segment of the populace, noting that the two bills would now empower the State Government to put in place a Sports Commission and Sports Trust fund, to effectively position sports an instrument for social change and youth development.
It would be recalled that Stakeholders including, representatives of the Association of International Sports Agencies, State Ministry of Youth and Sports, State Sports Council, Football Club Managers, Justice Development and Peace Commission, National Youth Council, Nigeria Bar Association, State Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, Sports Writers Association of Nigeria, retired sports administrators and Sports allied practitioners from the academia amongst others had earlier lauded the partnership between the legislative and executive arms at initiating the bills and allowing all stakeholders to participate in the public hearing.
They described the bills as age-long dream that would aid the development of sports in the State, noting that the establishment of a commission and trust fund for administrative and financial autonomy to manage the sector would allow the State reclaim its enviable position among its peers in sports.
Describing the Sports Trust Fund as an extension services of the Public Private Partnership initiative of the present administration, they expressed optimism that the two bills, when passed and signed into law, were capable of attracting more independent partners from the private sector, for the entire transformation of the sector.
