Aduragbemi Omiyale
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The Director-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Mr Lamido Yuguda, has emphasised the important role of sports in the socio-economic development of any nation.
He said the sports industry can be used to deepen financial inclusion in Nigeria and also discover more talents, who may likely ply their trades outside the country and remit more foreign exchange earnings to the nation, which will, in turn, boost the value of the Naira.
Speaking when he received the trophy won by the SEC Football Team at the just-concluded Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) All Financial Institutions Football Tournament, the DG said this is why adequate attention should be paid to sports.
Business Post reports that a total of 24 football teams from different financial institutions participated in the tournament aimed at contributing to the development of sports and promoting financial inclusion in the country.
Mr Yuguda described the tournament as one of the avenues used by regulators and operators in the financial ecosystem to promote the development of sports in Nigeria.
“I congratulate the team for going out, putting in your best and winning the cup for the commission.
“You have really done the SEC proud and I hope this is one of the first in the streams of trophies that you will bring back to the Commission.
“I was not really expecting the team to come back with the trophy and this was a big surprise when I was called that we qualified to the semi-finals and entered the finals and eventually became victorious,” the SEC chief said during the presentation also witnessed by former Super Eagles star, Daniel Amokachi, and others.
While commending Amokachi for celebrating with the team and the agency, he said the financial institutions’ tournament had led to the discovery of many football talents for Nigeria, expressing optimism that this year’s edition will also lead to the discovery of young talents that would do the country proud.
“This CBN all financial institutions cup has led to a number of bright young players being discovered and many of them have played in the international scene.
“For our young players in the SEC team, put in more efforts because the sky is your limit. Football is a great industry and it brings more joy to the nation because anytime the football team of Nigeria plays, everyone comes together to support them,” Mr Yuguda said.
In his remarks, Amokachi applauded the SEC management team for its support for football, advising members of the team not to get carried away by their victory and forget the importance of education.
He said while football talent is good, it is more rewarding when such talents are supported with quality education.
“I love this game and will do all to support it. There are a lot of lapses when it comes to football and it’s sad that I stopped playing football at 28 which is my peak. The young ones love to play football but I want to advise that they should also get an education,” the former Everton FC of England star said.
“There are a lot of people who need training and we need to upgrade the knowledge of the coaches that we have to be able to produce good players,” the African Nations’ Cup winner added.
