First and foremost, I want to congratulate Brigadier General Abdulrahman Bello on his appointment as the Acting Director of Physical Training in the Nigerian Army.
The reason for this congratulatory message is due to your track record as commandant of the Army School of physical training; you were able to construct the fifth-world highest Military Rappelling Tower to combat height phobia in trainees.
In the last three years, the Nigerian Army Sports Department has suffered injustice and was unable to attend major championships across the country. One of the sports that has gone into extinction in the Army is the handball team.
The Nigerian Army team nicknamed COAS Shooters have missed three seasons of the Handball League; the COAS Shooters first failed to show up for the 2021 Prudent Energy Handball League and they automatically got relegated. In the 2022 National Division 1 Handball League, COAS Shooters failed to show up while the players who are officers were posted to various duty posts.
The Nigerian Army in the past dominated sports like wrestling, Judo, Boxing, Shooting, and Karate but today, the athletes of these various sports are either wasting in the office or taken to the war front. In 2022, the Nigerian Army wrestling team was in a closed camp in Kaduna for a championship that has already been concluded; athletics athletes training with recruits ahead of national championships, and no more scouting of athletes/players at the National Championship.
The football team of the Nigerian Army aka Green Beret is another case study; the players are currently demoralised. The civilian players are still playing due to the passion of the game while the officers are still on the field of play because of the office. I also want to bring to your notice that the Nigerian Army Volleyball women’s team qualified to represent the country at the 2022 African Club Championship in Tunisia but they could not attend due to seen circumstances.
The expectations are very high because the sportsmen and women in the Nigerian Army hold you in high esteem and want you to set the ball rolling immediately. The basketball women’s league is already on and the Nigerian Army cannot attend. The volleyball and handball leagues come up in July, I hope the teams will be properly attended to as well as other sports. We hope you’ll salvage the sorry state of sports in the Army.
All the best to you Brigadier General Abdulrahman Bello in your new office.
Thanks Mr. Kuti.