As Sports stakeholders countdown to the elections into the various National Sports Federations holding in September, participants in a discussion on an influential social media platform, Nigeria Sports Center, have thrown their weight behind the return of the Interim Caretaker Chairman of Nigeria Basketball Federation, Ahmadu Musa Kida as the substantive President of the Federation.
The discussion started with a post from one Wonderland Events on the “Best candidates for next month’s Federation election based on their recent performance.”
He said that the Federations need President who can take their federations to the zenith in their various events, and presented the following choices for the Stakeholders among whom are: Squash (Mr. Boye Oyerinde), Volleyball ( Eng.Musa Nimrod), Basketball (Engr Musa Kida), Badminton (Francis Orbih Esq), Wrestling ( Mr Daniel Igali), Scrabble (Mr. Sulaiman Garba), Handball (Mr. Samuel Ocheho).
He stressed that the Federations need President who can keep the athletes busy with competitions and ensure that the country qualifies for the Commonwealth Games, African Games and Olympics. “We need referees and coaching clinics too to upgrade knowledge of the technical officials.” He concluded that these will save the country’s sports from going into extinction.
However, one Joseph Onekwu expressed curiosity on what Engr. Musa Kida has done in Basketball to make him best candidate for the presidency?
This however, elicited responses from participants who went ahead to outline the various achievements of Engineer Musa Ahmed Kida at the Basketball Federation that makes him the best to occupy the position.
According to Wonderland Events, “Under Kida’s leadership, Nigeria qualified for the Olympics in male and female category. The first country to achieve this in Africa. Under Kida, Total Energy came into Division 1 and Division 2 of our basketball league. This is a lower Division and not even the premier league. These are unprecedented success.”
Continuing, he said “the Division one league is different from the premier league. You are aware that the premier league was put on hold by a court judgement and luckily the court has reversed the decision.
Right now, effort is on to start the league.
It is players from the league that can play for the senior national team, which can only be determined by the national team handlers. Remember that even in football, Rohr has always used foreign based players. Once the league start, it is the coach’s decision to now select players” he opined.
To Akeem Busari, Engr Musa Kida is the best thing to have happened to Basketball in Nigeria “Without gainsaying, Engr. Musa Kida is the best thing to happen to basketball in Nigeria, in recent times. We need not recount how he spent his hard-earned personal funds, resources and galvanized local and foreign support and interests for the game in Nigeria”.
“I am a great supporter of excellent, exemplary and selfless leadership in whatever sphere”.
“Remember, the long battle he fought and eventually won in the law courts to regain the basketball league and bring back sanity to the game”.
“Talking about the representation of local players in the basketball national teams, the almost comatose state of the game in Nigeria, obviously played a big role in the selection processes. Now, with coach Brown extending his contract, and the divisions 1&2 coming up, basketball development in Nigeria can only get better”.
“Engr. Musa Kida, like Musa Nimrod, Daniel Igali, CSP Abubakar Yakubu deserves another tenure in office” he concluded.
Dominic Ehimare summed it up saying “I am with Musa Kida for life. I have only come in contact with him once and he left an indelible impressive impression in me about how sports matters should reside in the hands of competent people and not square pegs in round holes”.
Others who spoke on the platform enumerated the achievements of the NBBF under Kida to include:
D’Tigress winning the Afro basketball back-to-back for the first time.
Qualified to the World Cup in Spain and got to the quarter-finals for the first time.
The D’Tigers too got to the final at first attempt and won the Afro Basketball at the second attempt.
The first African team to beat the USA and Argentina, both global power House in Basketball. Became the first country to qualify for the 2020 FIBA World Cup in China. Created an upset by defeating China enroute to qualifying for the 2020 Olympics without having to go for the playoffs, and this is the first time the D’Tigers are doing so.
They concluded that Kida is a man who does not wait for Government to release funds for him to set the ball rolling. “He funds his activities and wait for his refunds.
Such refunds are usually far less than what he spends, and he takes it like that without complaining.
He believes that he must make sacrifices sometimes to attract the best, around the world, to be part of the NBBF’s journey to the summit of global Basketball” they concluded.
