Permanent Secretary, Nasarawa State Ministry of Youth and Sports Development, Chief Barr. Isaac Danladi, has assured the people of the State of a new dawn, emphasizing that they will experience new and different things in the days and months ahead.
He disclosed this during a live radio programme, ‘STEWARDSHIP’, anchored by Godspower Edeh, on Nasarawa Broadcasting Service, NBS, monitored in Lafia on Monday.
According to him, “Governor Abdullahi Sule has given us the newly appointed Permanent Secretaries a marching order upon our appointment and subsequent postings to our various Ministries that we should come out with innovations to move our Ministries to the next level.
“So far, in the Ministry of Youth and Sports, we have started familiarisation, fraternization and networking visits to individuals and Organizations that matter to help take our Ministry to the next level.
“Last week, we met with the Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports Development, and President, Nigeria Football Federation, all in Abuja, to woo their supports to the State in various areas.
“I can tell you today that both Organizations are willing to work with us. The Federal Ministry is sponsoring three of us(myself, the Director of Sports and one other person) to next month’s International Youth Games in Trinidad and Tobago to understudy how things are done there so we can come back home and replicate same.
“Also, the leadership of the NFF has accepted to lend support in areas of grassroots football development and other refresher packages to us.
“So, you can see we are already on track. There are many other opportunities in England and Russia for us to tap from, and hopefully, we will get there.”
On the relegation of Nasarawa United FC to the lower league division, Danladi appealed to supporters and fans of the Club for the painful development, but noted that Government is not relenting in ensuring that the team immediately returns to the elite domestic football league.
He also disclosed that as a Ministry we shall propose to Government on the need to build state-of-the-art sports facilities across the three Senatorial Zones of the State to encourage easy talent discoveries and subsequent harnessing for podium appearance.
The Permanent Secretary added that many youth-related programmes are being deliberately designed by the Government to cater for the needs of young persons to meaningfully engage them and unravel their potentials.
He emphasized that the Ministry would continue to synergize with appropriate Organizations and strategic partners to help turn around the fortune of young persons and sports in the State for the better, urging the youth to take advantage of the avalanche of opportunities to become self-reliant and productive to themselves and society at large.
Danladi reiterated that the Ministry would, henceforth, be a place that prioritizes all sports and critical stakeholders in fulfilment of the mandate of the Governor Sule administration.
