Governor Biodun Oyebanji of Ekiti State has pardoned four officials of the State Sports Council suspended over poor kitting of state athletes at the 7th National Youth Games in Asaba, Delta in September 2023.
Dr Olusola Osetoba , Technical Advisor to the governor on Sports Development, stated this while addressing members of the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria ( SWAN), Ekiti chapter in Ado-Ekiti, on Tuesday.
She said that four officials which included the General Manager, Mr Adekunle Adeyemi, Mr Isaac Elegbeleye, Mr Isiaka Oluyemi and Mr Olusola Ibitoye, have been posted to the ministry.
Osetoba said that new officials would be named for the vacant positions in the sports council in due course.
She said that the government has banned training and other unauthorised activities on the pitch of Oluyemi Kayode stadium in Ado- Ekiti, adding that the stadium would soon be refurbished.
The advisor said the government has concluded an arrangement to build a sports hall at the Ekiti Kete Pavilion, which would provide facilities for several sporting events.
She said that the government would soon carry out a total restructuring of the two state-owned football clubs, Ekiti United and Ekiti Queens,Osetoba said there were lapses in the administrative setup of the two clubs, and a new board would be constituted to revive the good performance of the clubs.
She thanked members of SWAN for their support when she was chairman of the Sports Council, saying she would need similar support in her new task.
The aide appealed to the sports writers to give full backing to the administration of Oyebanji in his task to take sports to greater heights in the state.
NAN reports that the officials were suspended for alleged mismanagement of funds and poor kitting of Ekiti athletes at the 7th National Youth Games in Asaba in 2023.(NAN).
