Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri has assured his administration’s commitment to hosting the National Sports Festival in Bayelsa in 2028.
He maintaining that his administration is poised to complete the ongoing construction work of the 30,000-seater stadium in Igbogene, 5,000-seater stadium in Sampou in Kolokuma Opukuma Local Government Area and other facilities in the State.
Governor Diri gave the assurance at the weekly Prosperity Walk at the Samson Siasia Stadium, Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital
He assured Bayelsans that the stadium would be completed at the stipulated time to host the National Sports Festival, stressing that sports remain one of his administration’s goal to positively engage the youths.
The governor also expressed confident that the newly-constituted interim board of Bayelsa United will deliver on its assignment.
Bayelsa State Deputy Governor, Dr Peter Akpe, had on Thursday during the weekly Prosperity Walk, announced an interim board comprising experienced sports administrators headed by Dr. Peter Singabele, to oversee the affairs of the club for the next six months.
He noted that with the calibre of personalities on the board, he was confident that the board would deliver on the assignment, pointing out that the board was filled with experienced personalities with proven track records.
According to the state helmsman, he was impressed with the board’s vigour to immediately embark on the appointment of a new technical adviser for the team, urging them not to rest on their oars until they achieved their objectives.
He asserted that the government would not interfere with the selection of players asserting that selection of players would be decided by the coaches and not by the board so that the coaches could be held culpable when they fall short of the set target.
”I want to use this opportunity to appreciate the Bayelsa United Interim Board that we have put together headed by Dr Peter Singabele, I am aware that they have hit the ground running with the process of appointing a new coach for the team. I want to charge them to run with speed to ensure that new coaches are recruited with players sorted out” Gov Diri stated.
”Players must be sorted out by the coaches, no interference by the board, no interference by the government, no one should interfere with the coaches, let the coaches bring out the best of players so that if anything goes wrong we will hold them responsible”, he maintained.
