Buhari gives N1m each to D’Tigress players

*Donations will spur us – Team captain

President Muhammadu Buhari Wednesday splashed the sum of N1 million to each member of the national female basketball team, D’Tigress, who won the 2017 FIBA Women’s AfroBasket tournament in Mali. 

The team also qualified for the 2018 FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup in Spain.

The President also donated N500,000 each to the officials of the team.

He directed the Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, to ensure that the money is released to the players and officials with immediate effect.

The President assured that government would continue to support the players and officials in order to ensure that they excel against their competitors in Spain.

In her remarks, the team captain, Aisha Mohammed, said the cash reward would spur them to go for gold in Spain next year.

Also speaking, Minister of Sports and Youth Development, Mr. Solomon Dalung, said the President’s pronouncement in 2015 that ‘I think sports loves me’, was part of what motivated the team to win in Mali.

He said there has been silent reforms going on in the sports sector, stressing that the ministry is determined to take steps that would spur restore glory in the country’s sports.

The President of Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF), Musa Ahmadu Kida, attributed the success of the team to the democratic process that has returned to the federation. 

He said if the team could achieve this result in three weeks of the new executive, it would repeat the same feat in Spain.