Sports
Fakiyesi Abiola’s Injury Story; A Perfect Example Of Playing The Victim Card To Achieve Financial Blackmail
BY MICHEAL OBASI
In a very fast social media-inclined society like Nigeria, playing the victim card is one of the commonest ways to gain attention for both sympathy, traffic, and financial gains.
And this cut across all facets of society, from family, music, Politics, and Sports.
People have perfected the act of playing the victim card using the powerful instrument of social media to achieve their aims.
This epitomises the behaviour of Female footballer Fakiyesi Abisola who was recently dashed 6 Million Naira by Popular Nigeria Music Producer Don Jazzy.
Bisola painted a story of an abandoned player who desperately needed help to treat her knee injury in order to return to active football.
At a time when women’s Football is gaining more serious attention and followership in the country after the successful outing of the Nigeria senior women’s team at the FIFA Women’s World Cup this year, the player in question lashed out this to draw social media attention and sympathy.
Unfortunately, she got the attention she had pre-planned which was to raise money, draw traffic to her social media, and provoke Public Rage against her club, Naija Ratel.
Fakiyesi painted a story of being abandoned by Naija Ratel to put the club and management in a bad light.
This after fact-checking was discovered to be totally false and a misrepresentation of the truth.
When the player was injured, she was sent to the club’s official Medical Centre in Makurdi for better examination and treatment but the player left Makurdi at her own instance back to her base in Ekiti for reasons only known to her.
When her coach who brought her to the club in Abuja from Ekiti contacted her on what she is doing in Ekiti, she said she wanted to focus more on her education and she had to come prepared for her exams.
This same player has been on regular salary by the club despite her below playing quality which made her not to be registered for the season.
And as of the time the player went public to plead for help, she was still a member of the club’s official WhatsApp group where coaches, officials, and players interact and express concerns.
But the big question is when the player jumped to Social media to ask for help, did she ever post her concerns on the club WhatsApp group?
She claimed to have reached out to the club Chairman on several occasions but no response.
However, it was gathered she never informed the club about the scan she did in Ekiti state where she was told she would be needing six million Naira but swiftly went online to solicit help.
Further fact-checking findings also showed that Naija Ratel is one of the leading Nigeria women’s football clubs when it comes to players’ Welfare and Hospitality.
The Club has its own official hospital in both Abuja( the Supreme hospital ) and Benue state where it’s players go for both on and off-the-pitch treatments.
Several players have benefited and still benefiting from this even players from opposing teams that come to play against the team.
Beyond the club’s solid medical structure for its players, the club also has a strong educational incentive for its players where several players have benefited from secondary and tertiary scholarships up to date.
Be all that as it may, the club finds it totally shocking that a player went on social media to paint a scenario of being neglected to get financial sympathy so that the image of her club would be seen in a bad light.
And because we are in a society where people especially celebrities are always ready to lash out at anything to sell their Supposed humanitarian and philanthropic image nobody is ready to investigate any information being put out there.
No disrespect to the gestures of Don Jazzy to come to the player’s aide but people need to always double-check before jumping on any story being put out there in order for us to build a better society where both the less privileged are not victimized and the rich also is not being ruined by cheap blackmail.
Written by Micheal Obasi
Sports Journalist/Sports Affairs Analyst.
Convener; JFirst Sports International
Sports
PremiumTrust Bank Abuja City International Half Marathon Splashes Big Prize Money Ahead Of 14 November 2026 Race
Top Three Elite Finishers To Earn $8,000, $6,000 And $5,000 Respectively
The organisers of the highly anticipated PremiumTrust Bank Abuja City International Half Marathon have announced an attractive prize package for athletes across every category ahead of the race on 14 November 2026 in Abuja.
The prize announcement has been welcomed by athletes and coaches, as the event continues to establish itself as one of the leading road races in Nigeria. The race offers local athletes the chance to compete against international runners in front of a home crowd, while also earning meaningful rewards.
In the elite category, first place earns $8,000, second place takes $6,000, third place gets $5,000, fourth place receives $4,000, fifth place goes home with $3,000, sixth place earns $2,000, seventh place takes $1,000, and eighth place gets $500.
In the Nigerian category, first place earns ₦2,000,000, second place takes ₦1,500,000, third place gets ₦1,000,000, fourth place receives ₦500,000, fifth place goes home with ₦300,000, sixth place earns ₦200,000, seventh place takes ₦100,000, and eighth place gets ₦50,000.
According to the organisers, the prize structure reflects the commitment of PremiumTrust Bank to the growth of athletics in Nigeria and to the encouragement of home based athletes. The separate Nigerian category ensures that local runners are properly recognised and rewarded for their performance.
The half marathon, which covers 21 kilometres, remains an important event for long distance runners. It serves as a test of endurance and preparation, and it provides a competitive platform for athletes building towards major national and international competitions.
The race is expected to draw elite athletes, club runners, corporate teams, fitness enthusiasts and supporters from across Nigeria and beyond. The turnout is expected to be high, given the interest already shown since registration opened.
Organisers have advised interested runners to register early through the official registration portal of the race to secure their participation, as arrangements are being put in place for timing, security, medical support and traffic management on race day.
The prize money is now confirmed, attention will shift to the athletes as they complete their final weeks of training and preparations ahead of the race day.
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