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Dutch Sports Brand ‘Masita’ Partners RSDF, Throws Weight Behind Flying Officers Cup

Published

3 years ago

September 21, 2021

Global Sporting Brand ‘Masita’ Enters Partnership With Ratels Sports Foundation Ahead Flying Officers Cup.

Top European Sports Brand ‘Masita’ Confirms Support For Flying Officers Cup.

One of Europe’s biggest Sports Equipment brands, Masita on Monday in far-away Holland gave its backing to the biggest Women Football Pre-season Championship in Africa, the Flying Officers Cup.

The Dutch Sportswear brand stamped their endorsement on the Women’s Pre-season Championship when the President of Ratels Sports Development Foundation (RSDF) President, Barrister Paul Edeh was received at their head office in Mastritch, Holland on Monday.

Masita was founded in 1933 by the Mass family from Sittard and focus mainly on the trade and processing of sportswear, kitting clubs like Fortuna Sittard, Guinea National Team, Kiyovu Sports Rwanda, Mees Palace Football Academy Jos, Namungo Tanzania, KMV Tanzania, Wakriya Guinea and the many more.

While receiving Barrister Paul Edeh, the Chief Executive Officer of the top European Sportswear, Kurt Molin was full of praises for Edeh, who he said has invested massively into the growth of women’s football in Nigeria and Africa. The top executive further went on to say that a partnership deal between Masita and Ratels Sports Development Foundation is on the verge of getting sealed.

“We are thrilled to enter into a relationship with Ratels Sports Development Foundation and Naija Ratels, a promising and ambitious Club and we hope that this strategic partnership allows us to work closely with the club as they enter into this next phase.

“We have read a lot about what Ratels Sports Development Foundation are doing with women football in Nigeria and are proud to receive the President of the Foundation, Barrister Paul Edeh to our head office here in Holland.

“We are highly satisfied with all these achievements and are ready to partner with the foundation on their numerous programmes including the upcoming Flying Officers Cup.

“Masita look forward to a great partnership and is also confident that we can always get the best from this agreement.

“We are proud to be kit sponsor of the club in the forthcoming Women’s League season in Nigeria.”

Also in the meeting in Holland was Former Super Eagles and South Korea Men National team Head Coach, Bonfrere Joe, who described Barrister Paul Edeh as a man who should be emulated by many in the Football Cycle in Nigeria and Africa.

Bonfrere Joe who was pioneer Technical Adviser of the Super Falcons, leading them to their first ever FIFA Women World Cup in China (1991), inspiring players like Ann Chiejine, Uche Eucharia, Marvis Ogun, Chioma Ajunwa and many more to greatness later on in their career expressed his happiness with the project of Ratels Sports Development Foundation.

“It is a huge achievement from my brother, Barrister Paul Edeh. We need more of this to develop women’s football in Africa and am impressed with what we have been able to see from the last two editions.

“I would like to inform you that what you are doing is unprecedented and that’s the reason I am giving my full support to this competition and am sure it would go a long way to help get women’s football to it’s right position in Africa and the world as a whole.

“I’m very hopeful and optimistic that this partnership with Masita is one of many partnerships that would be sealed by your foundation.”

He also hinted that he will be in Nigeria in the coming weeks for the 25th anniversary celebration of the Olympic Gold Medal won by Nigeria.

Also reacting, Mr Emmanuel Adukwu, the CEO of Mees Palace Football Academy, Jos who brokered the deal heaped praises on the Sports Brand that has continued to support teams in Africa.

“The Masita brand offers the biggest opportunity to the growing sports market in Nigeria and Africa at large

producing the highest quality sports equipment at the most affordable prices known for durability as well. I am happy that more teams are deciding to come on board the Masita partnership especially the Ratels Sports Development Foundation”. Adukwu noted.

He further listed technical assistance to the Various teams kitted by Masita through their coaches exchange program as a variable benefit no Nigerian sports club can Afford to Ignore.

Ratels Sports Development Foundation (RSDF) Boss, Barrister Paul Edeh thanked the Chief Executive Officer of Masita Sportswear for giving them the chance to seal a partnership with them, He also hailed former Super Eagles Coach Bonfrere Joe for lending his hand of support to the Flying Officers Cup, promising him that his Foundation will do all that is possible to continue pushing for a better future for the girl-child.

“Today’s announcement with Masita represents a landmark day for Ratels Sports Development Foundation and Naija Ratels Football Club’s commercial strategy as we continue to attract new global brands to our projects.

“My visit to Europe is to seal partnership deals and develop the various programmes of the Ratels Sports Development Foundation, as we get prepared and ready to host the best and the biggest Women Football Pre-season Championship next month.

“We are glad about this kind of support and partnership gotten from ‘Masita’ which is well-known worldwide as one of the top sports clothing company. We will also work and ensure that we get positives from this agreement.

I also want to thank Mr Emmanuel Adukwu, who is Nigeria representative of the brand ‘Masita’ and also the veteran Football Coach, Bonfrere Joe, who is a man that I have always admired even before he led Nigeria to their first-ever Gold medal at the Football event in the Olympics. He is technically sound and has always been a winner.

Ratels Sports Development Foundation is the brainchild of Legal Luminary, Barrister Paul Edeh and has been given various supports to the girl-child through Sports and Education.

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Business

Tax Reform Bills: The Verdict of Nigerians

Published

2 weeks ago

March 6, 2025

The Gleamer

Ismaila Ahmad Abdullahi Ph.D

The public hearings conducted recently by the two Chambers of the National Assembly have elicited positive responses from a broad spectrum of Nigerians, cutting across regional interest groups, government agencies, civil society groups, concerned individuals, the academia, and Labour Unions, among diverse others. Contrary to a few dissensions hitherto expressed in the media, almost all the stakeholders who spoke during the week-long sessions were unanimous in their declaration that the hallowed Chambers should pass the tax reform bills after a clean-up of the grey areas.

The public hearings were auspicious for all Nigerians desirous of economic growth and fiscal responsibility. They were also a watershed moment for the Federal Inland Revenue Service, which had been upbeat about the tax reforms. Indeed, the public hearings had rekindled hope in the tenets of democracy that guarantee freedom of expression and equitable space for cross-fertilisation of ideas. Without gainsaying the fact, the tax reform bills have been unarguably about the most thought-provoking issues in Nigeria today, drawing variegated perspectives and commentaries from even unlikely quarters such as the faith-based leaders, student bodies, and trade unions, which speaks much about the importance of the bills.

In the build-up to the public hearings, not many people believed that the bills would make it to the second reading, much less the public hearings. Even the Northern stakeholders who seemed unlikely to support the passage of the bills have softened their stance and have given valuable suggestions that would enrich the substance of the bills. The Arewa Consultative Forum came to the public hearings well-prepared with a printed booklet that addressed their concerns. It concluded with an advisory that the bills should be “Well planned, properly communicated, strategically implemented and ample dialogue and political consensus allowed for the reforms to be accepted.”

The concerns of ACF ranged from the composition of the proposed Nigeria Revenue Service Board as contained in Part 111, Section 7 of the bill, the unlimited Presidential power to exempt/wave tax payment as proposed in Section 75(1) of the bill, the family income or inheritance tax as contained in Part 1, Section 4(3) of the bill, to the issues around development levy and VAT. On the development levy, the ACF stated that unless the Federal Government is considering budgetary funding for TETFUND, NASENI and NITDA, it does not see the “wisdom behind the plan to replace (them) with NELFUND”.

The position of the North was equally reinforced by the Supreme Council for Shariah in Nigeria, Northern Elders Forum, Kano State Government, Professor Auwalu Yadudu, and the FCT Imams. Like the ACF, these stakeholders lent their respective voices to the Section on the Inheritance Tax in Part 1 of the bill and the use of the term ‘ecclesiastical’, which, in their views, undermines certain religious rights and beliefs. The Kano State Government, represented by Mahmud Sagagi, affirmed that “we support tax modernisation” but cautioned that “we must ensure that this process does not come at the expense of states’ constitutional rights and economic stability”. Professor Auwalu Yadudu, a constitutional law professor, drew attention to the use of the ‘supremacy clause’ and cautioned that the repeated use of “notwithstanding” in the bills would undermine the supremacy of the Nigerian constitution if passed as such.

Other stakeholders that made contributions at the sessions included the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas, Fiscal Responsibility Commission, Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission, Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria, Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria, Nigeria Customs Service, and a host of others. While most of their concerns bordered on technical issues requiring fine-tuning, they were unanimous in their support for the bills. They aligned with the position of the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Zacch Adedeji, Ph.D. and the Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, Mr Taiwo Oyedele, which is that the extant tax laws and fiscal regulations are obsolete necessitating reforms aimed at creating a fair and equitable tax and fiscal space to grow Nigeria’s economy.

In one of the sessions, Dr Zaach Adedeji expounded on the criss-cross of trade activities in the Free Trade Zone whereby companies misuse tax waivers as exporters to sell their goods or services in the Customs Area at an amount usually less than the price the operators in the Customs Area who pay VAT and other taxes sell theirs thereby disrupting business transactions. This way, the operators in the Free Trade Zone shortchange the government in paying their due taxes by circumventing extant regulations, which are inimical to the economy’s growth.

Overall, the presentations were forthright, foresighted, and helpful in elucidating the issues contained in the bills. According to the statistics read out at the end of the hearings at the Senate, 75 stakeholders were invited, 65 made submissions, and 61 made presentations. At the House of Representatives 53 stakeholders made presentations. By all means, this is a fair representation. Given the presentations, it is evident that the National Assembly has gathered enough materials to guide its deliberations on the bills. As we look forward to the passage of the bills, we commend the leadership of the National Assembly for their unwavering commitment to making the bills see the light of the day.

Abdullahi is the Director of the Communications and Liaison Department, FIRS.

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