Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung, has summoned the Athletics
Federation of Nigeria’s Secretary-General Olumide Bamiduro and staff of
the Federation of Elite Athletes Department, over the ticket scandal
that rocked his sports ministry over the weekend.
A mail was purportedly written by the AFN Secretary Olumide Bamiduro and
sent to Athletes, asking them to send an estimate of what their ticket
to Rio may cost, with an assurance that refunds will be given to them if
approved by the ministry.
The Minister has since washed his hands off the viral
mail, stating that he had neither instructed anyone to push such
information nor even muted such to FEAD. Part of the statement reads,
“I hereby restate that no athlete has been authorized or asked to buy
his or her ticket to the Olympic Games. Whoever that wrote the letter
did so on his or her own accord without due consultation with the
overseer of sports in the country which is the Ministry of Youth and
Sports. We are totally committed to the welfare of our athletes and will
ensure that they are not psychologically affected by distractions
caused by this letter.’’
In a related development, athletes will start moving to the Games village in Rio on August 1, 2016.
