Pioneer president of the Nigerian Skating Federation, Comrade Joseph Evah, has called for urgent mobilisation to ensure that the deaths of 22 Kano State athletes and officials are not forgotten, warning that without sustained pressure on the government, nothing will happen beyond mere statements, Saturday PUNCH reports.
Speaking at a press conference in Lagos State on Tuesday, Evah said the sporting community must not allow the tragic deaths to be in vain, as government officials typically make statements and “within one month, they are forgotten.”
“We need to make sure that these deaths are not in vain. The government should not deny these parents, whatever they can do to show that we care in the sporting community,” the former NSF president said.
The 22 victims died in a fatal road crash on Saturday near Gadar Yankifi along the Kaduna-Kano expressway whilst returning from the 2024 National Sports Festival in Ogun State. The accident involved a Kano State Government coaster bus with registration number KN 041 A17, which the Federal Road Safety Corps blamed on fatigue and excessive speed.
Evah expressed particular outrage over reports that the bus had broken down multiple times before the crash, describing the Kano State government as ‘shameless’ for allowing athletes to travel in such poor conditions.
“In the papers, the survivors revealed their bus broke down many times before the crash, and if we are not interested in following up, then more of this will happen,” he said.
“The bus is already old and some government officials, federal and state, will read that the bus broke down many times before the crash and they will just ignore it.”
He questioned whether the Kano State government would provide such a vehicle for politicians on campaign trips, asking, “Can the Kano state government give an old vehicle to politicians to go for any campaign? Not to talk of moving from the end of Nigeria to another end of Nigeria.”
The former federation boss demanded that the Minister of Sports immediately visit Kano alongside the governor to honour the deceased athletes and console their families.
“We want to see them on TV. Let the Governor invite the Minister. They should move around. Let us see compassion from our leaders.
“The federal government has failed to respond or encourage our youths, our stars to shine. We are going to force them. If we see that the Kano State government is doing ‘shakara’, we will do our best to make sure that they and the FG respond, I will go as far as taking them to court,” he declared.
Drawing from his experience as skating federation president, Evah highlighted the persistent problem of inadequate insurance coverage for athletes saying, “When I was president of Nigeria Skaters Federation we tried everything because skating is a very dangerous sport. They dribbled us, our political class will dribble our children, dribble them and it won’t succeed unless there is political will.”
Elijah Andrew, Chief of Staff of Ijaw Monitoring Group, condemned the Kano State government’s N1m compensation to victims’ families as “an insult,” comparing it unfavourably to the millions given for “irrelevant” purposes.
“Another insult from the Kano State commissioner was that they said they are giving all the families N1m. That is so sad. How can you say 1 million? We expected the government to give these people state burial,” he said.
He argued that the young athletes had “paid the supreme price” whilst representing their state, similar to military personnel who die in service, and deserved streets named after them and proper documentation of their sacrifice.
Rachel Nwabia, Alumni of the National Association of Ijaw Female Students, echoed calls for the Kano State government to visit each victim’s family for condolence visits, though she expressed doubt about their willingness to act without media pressure.
“The Kano State government would not, it is very hard for them to do such, except if the media keep emphasising it, then you will see them act. Without that, you will not see them act,” Nwabia said.
She suggested that the federal government should honour the 22 lives through monuments bearing their names in stadiums to encourage youth participation in sports.
The tragic accident has exposed long-standing issues in Nigerian sports administration, particularly regarding athlete welfare and transportation safety. The victims, who included wrestling and kickboxing athletes, journalists, secretaries of sports associations, referees, medical personnel and two drivers, were returning from the Gateway Games 2024 which ended on Thursday.
Among the deceased was Imam Umar Fagge, a football referee and younger brother of the acting chairman of the Kano State Sports Commission, Umar Fagge, who later described the victims as “among our best hands at the sports commission.”
The Federal Road Safety Corps has launched an investigation into the crash, with Zonal Commanding Officer Assistant Corps Marshal Ahmed Umar noting that the accident occurred at a notorious death trap spot. President Bola Tinubu described the incident as a “devastating blow to the nation” and called for concrete steps to prevent such tragedies.
The National Sports Commission has since announced mandatory comprehensive insurance coverage for all contingents and mechanical certification for vehicles used during sports festivals, though critics argue such measures should have been in place long before this tragedy occurred.
The Ogun State Government sent a delegation led by Deputy Governor Engineer Naimot Salako-Oyedele to Kano and donated N31m to the victims.
