A Ministerial Committee established by former Sports Minister John Enoh has uncovered serious administrative failings that contributed to Team Nigeria’s poor showing at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
According to a report by the Guardian Newspapers on Monday, the panel, among other things, recommended disciplinary action against key officials in the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN), including the federation’s Secretary General, Rita Mosindi, and Technical Director, Samuel Onikeku.
In its findings, the committee stated: “The Secretary General of the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN), Rita Mosindi, should be penalised by the appropriate authority for negligence in her duties. She was unable to provide convincing evidence to our committee to support her claim that she submitted important documents relating to the registration of athlete Favour Ofili in the 100 meters to the Ministry of Sports Development and the Nigeria Olympic Committee.”
The report went on to note that “Rita’s reliance on social media—WhatsApp messaging as her only means of official communication does not speak well of her competence as an administrative officer.”
The panel also criticised Technical Director Samuel Onikeku, who dismissed reports of Ofili’s omission as mere “rumour.” The committee asserted: “Our committee is strongly of the view that the AFN technical director made poor judgment by not reporting such an important ‘hint’ or ‘rumor’ about his own athlete’s omission from an Olympic Games event, even if only to cross-check its veracity or otherwise.”
For her distressing experience, the committee recommended a compensation of N8 million for sprinter Favour Ofili, who was shockingly omitted from the registration list for the 100-metre event despite being fully qualified.
Nigeria’s campaign in Paris ended without a single medal, marking the nation’s eighth Olympic appearance without any podium finishes and exposing a series of organisational failures.
The omission of qualified athletes, including Ofili, added to the frustration and embarrassment surrounding the country’s performance.
THE PRIME NEWS gathered that the committee, established in response to widespread backlash over Nigeria’s Olympic “show of shame,” submitted its findings to the minister shortly before he was reassigned to another portfolio by the Presidency.
Extracts from the report, obtained by The Guardian over the weekend, also highlighted a major communication gap among personnel in the Sports Ministry, AFN, and the Nigerian Olympic Committee (NOC).
