Sports

Lobi Stars in capable hands under the watchful eyes of Dr. Phillip Nongu

Published

2 weeks ago

October 1, 2024

By Pius Idoko

It is the dawn of a new era, and a new lease of life has come for all lovers and supporters of Lobi Stars Football Club of Makurdi, as the newly appointed chairman of the club, Comrade Dr. Phillip Nongu has expressed his deepest desire and the willingness to turn around the fortunes of the club from being an average sailing, or a mid table team to becoming a more competitive club in the country.

Dr. Phillip said this while speaking with sports journalists, at the FIFA goal project on Saturday afternoon in Abuja.

In spite of the fact that there were challenges on ground when he was assigned to take over the role as the new chairman of the club, Dr. Phillip believes his 15 years wealth of experience serving as the secretary of football in Benue state will be key in charting a new course for Lobi Stars.

On assumption, his first bold step following his prompt enthronement was to clear the backlog of some unpaid salaries of players and other staff which was taking it’s toll on the general performance of the club.

That being said, it is believed that the players are now in good spirit, and will shore up their ante with an improved performance in churning out good results in the league, while the board will also work together and get all stakeholders involved in their bid to drive the club in attaining new heights in Nigerian football.

“Our boys are in good spirit, when I took over, they had challenges of three months backlog of salaries, so their morale was down, but now that we have started paying, I think they’ll up their game”

“For the club itself, gone are the days when we struggle around relegation zone at times, although I can’t do it alone, we have to carry all the stakeholders along, since I took over, we are planning to meet with SWAN, the Referees, the fans and our supporters and the rest of them”

“Yes the appointment is a challenge but am not a new person in the football cycle, and am not new to the terrain, am coming in with some challenges we have at hand, but with time, we will be able to excel”

Comrade Dr. Phillip Nongu, is the Director of sports, Benue state, who also served as the secretary of football in Benue state for 15 years, and a premier league match commissioner at present.

He was appointment to take over the reigns from the former club chairman, Dominic Iorfa, two days before the commencement of the new NPFL season, and all lovers of football in the state have heave a sigh of relief, and are wishing and rooting for him to succeed being at the helm of affairs.

Share on Facebook

Sports

Gusau Praises President Tinubu, ValueJet crew for diligence and endurance

Published

3 days ago

October 15, 2024

The Gleamer

Joel Ajayi

The President of Nigeria Football Federation, Alhaji Ibrahim Musa Gusau on Tuesday expressed the deep appreciation of the NFF and the Nigeria Football family for the warm words of encouragement from the President and Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR following the Super Eagles’ return from a better-forgotten Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match adventure in Libya.

On Monday, Mr. President put out a statement warmly welcoming the team back to home, and asking for prompt justice from the Confederation of African Football following the inhumane treatment of the Nigerian contingent. Mr. President also commended the proactive coordination between the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Federal Ministry of Sports Development in addressing the unfortunate episode and ensuring the safe return of the players.

“We hereby express our deep and sincerest appreciation to His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his warm and kind words of encouragement. These words have gone a long way to reassure the players of the firm support of the Government and people of Nigeria for what they do and the efforts and sacrifice they make in representing this great country.

“The commitment and love for the team by the Government and the entire nation was aptly demonstrated by the physical presence of the Honourable Minister of Sports Development, Senator John Owan Enoh at the airport to welcome the team back to Nigeria.

“Mr. President as the father of the nation, has once again demonstrated his concern and keen interest in the beautiful game of football that unites our peoples from all walks of life and across all known mental, physical, spiritual, political and economic boundaries, and which fosters national unity and friendship among peoples and nations of the universe.”

Gusau, who led the delegation to Libya, also commended the captain and crew of the ValueJet aircraft that flew the delegation to and from that country, saying that their patience, diligence, good manners, warmth and endurance made the trip less arduous for the contingent.

“The captain (Mr. Abdul-Latif) and crew were awesome. I must commend, in particular, the captain. He did his job professionally and with a touch of excellence, and even intervened at a point to talk to the airport operatives to allow the NFF leadership to go outside the airport to find a way to hire vehicles for the team. As a fellow North African (Tunisian) who had worked in Libya previously, they were ready to offer him hotel accommodation but not any other member of the crew or any Nigerian, as all the hotels in the city disclosed that they had strict orders not to welcome any Nigerian nationality. He refused their offer and rather opted to sleep in the aircraft with the rest of the crew.

“The captain and crew showed great maturity and kindness. We will never forget them.”

Share on Facebook