Nigerian Basketball Players have urged the Minister of Youth and Sports Development, Mr.Sunday Dare, to resolve the lingering leadership crisis rocking the Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF).
The players who stormed the office of the sports minister on Tuesday to register their displeasure, frowned at the posture of the Nigerian games master in handling the leadership impasse rocking the federation.
Speaking to Journalists, a former NBA Player and board member under the then Engr. Musa Kida-led board, Mr.Ejike Ugboaja, enjoined the Youth and Sports Minister to be bold and address the issue without sentiments.
“The two elections were concluded two weeks ago, and we don’t know the stand of the minister. I served under the Musa Kida’s board and I have played the game for more than 12 years. We have never experienced this type of problem before.
“Except the Minister has been compromised, I think by today, we ought to have our President, and not the ministry running the show. We want the minister to come out and tell us what is going on, we want him to address us, we want the minister as the father of the game to tell us his position.
“Without the players, there is no basketball,” Ugboaja said.
In his reaction, the present players representative on the board of the NBBF, Mr.Stanely Gumut, said basketball players home and abroad have thrown their weight behind Mr. Igoche Mark, insisting that the players have vowed not to repeat the mistake made four years ago.
He said, “We don’t want to repeat the mistake we made four years ago, wasted time is what we don’t want to repeat again. All our fight is about players’ welfare. The truth of the matter is that we the players have thrown our weight behind Mr. Igoche Mark.
“Unfortunately, the ministry is not saying anything about it. We the players are the pioneers of this game and we don’t want to play free basketball anymore.The minister is suppose to come out and talk to us as a father, but the man has been shying away from talking to us and his action becoming worrisome to us.”
Nigerian Basketball Players have vowed to resist every attempt to impose Engr. Musa Kida as the NBBF President.
They described the previous NBBF board under Kida as a sham, and a global disgrace to basketball administration.
