Using sports as a catalyst to bridge political gap

BY ISOKPUNWU GODDY EHIKIOYA

The political terrain in Edo State has become tensed and competitive as the ‘old brigade’ are no longer effective or result oriented due to the up shift in the political education and awareness of the electorates. 

This trend has not done any politician any good, rather they have been forcefully put on their toes to go back to their drawing board with their thinking caps tightly worn on their heads to forge new method to woo and attract youth in the state to participate in election voting. 

In time past, during electioneering period, politicians adopt stereotype methods of distributing petty items ranging from foods, clothes and more. They also give meagre amount of money to hoodlums who risk their lives  while snatching ballot boxes from polling booths despite the tight security. These life threatening occurrences have made voting unattractive and scary to people, especially youth in the state from exercising there civic right. 

There have been so much hues and cries from the public on the need for state government to take steps to curb this menace and until recently that the government heeded and introduced technology in the monitoring of both state and local government elections. 

This development has drastically reduced election malpractices in the state. Hence, politicians have stepped up in their strategies to get more votes by  organising sports competitions for youth. Such sports which include: football, table tennis, scrabble and chess saw politicians for once collaborated with Ministry of Sports and Youth Development in Edo State to organise sports competitions as one way to engage the youth meaningfully and add value to their lives. 

The period marked the reintegration of all, especially the youth, to cultural heritage for unity and strength. Youths from different religion, political and tribal backgrounds came out in large number to participate in the competition. Indeed, it was funfair and excitement for all through.

The a week long sporting event was actually applauded by stakeholders, pundits and public analysts considering the social, political and economic benefits to the citizenry and the government at large. It was described as a good step in the right direction.

Meanwhile, the politicians who sponsored  the competition used the moment to boost and rebrand their image and relationship with the public to gain popularity, accessibility and acceptance.

Investigation revealed that the period of the event witnessed beehives of economic activities in Benin City, especially within the Dr. Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium, venue of the competition. There was obvious increase in business activities throughout the time of the games and this automatically translated to a swell or rise in the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of Edo State.

Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State in his closing remark at the closing ceremony of the competition summarised the event as a rebirth in the state’s politics, stressing that more programmes will be adopted to attract youths to politics and also ensure that every vote counts at the state elections. 

He advised all stakeholders to always stick or abide by the political rules as spelt out by the state electoral body.

No doubt that the event will leave a lasting memory in the minds of the people. Organisers have been urged to ensure continuity of the sports competition and to take steps in future to extend the competition to other urban areas in the state.