By Martin Odiete
Dignitaries that graced the just concluded 21st edition of the National Sports Festival hosted in Asaba have showered encomium on Delta state government for staging one of the best festival ever witnessed in Nigeria.
They applauded the state for providing the best sporting facilities for the games which gave it a semblance of a proper international Sporting fiesta.
Aside the first class facilities provided for Athletes to showcase their talents, the organization was top notch, with experts in several field manning different areas of the festival.
The dominant display of Delta state Athletes at the game speaks volume about Delta state sports development program, which for now is second to none in Nigeria. So, anybody accusing the state of poching athletes from other states to win the festival may want to cover his or her face in shame.
Infact, former Ogun state commissioner for Sports, Bukola Olapade told www.theajasanews.com in Asaba that it will take another twenty years for any state to catch up with Delta state in sports development.
But, far beyond the whole success story of the state is the role played by Delta state Commissioner for Information and Chairman of the media committee of the Games, Ehiedu Charles Aniagwu during the games.
The silent, but effective and efficient way he marshalled the media during the games was the reason the festival enjoyed massive positive reportage. He never for once displayed the kind of arrogance mostly associated with some of these commissioners. He was very accessible to all, meeting their needs were neccessary.
I had worked with him during our days at DBN television before he moved over to AIT. And I can testify that he was indeed a very interligent journalist, and he indeed brought that to the fore in the way he related with all the journalist that came for the festival.
Ehiedu was at the media center everyday, briefing and providing answers to questions from journalists. He never told any journalist not to do their job but pleaded that whatever reservation they had over any gray areas of the Festival should be brought to him for clarification. One of the problems journalist do face when they cover events like the festival is that the authorities are most times too far away to provide readily answer to issues. This was where Ehiedu excelled. After each briefing, he stays behind attending to any one with issues. He was never in a hurry to leave the media center.
The amiable Commissioner ensured that snacks and drinks, and most times quality foods were provided for journalists twice each day all through the festival. He also ensured that the media center of the Steven Keshi stadium was very comfortable for them to work, making sure that all the air conditioners were in good condition, and if any was faulty he requested that a new one be provided immediately.
Almost seventy percent of journalists that covered the sports festival in Asaba were provided with very decent accommodation.
The comfort of the journalists were his paramount concern and he never slacked in that responsibility. While, he understand that most of the journalists would find it difficult to effectively cover the festival because of the spread in the event centers, he raised a team of journalists who went about the venues, collating results and making them available on time to them.
It has never been this good for journalists covering national sporting events like it was at the National Sports Festival in Asaba. Every journalists that covered this year’s sports fiesta left Delta state with a taste of first class media attention, all thanks to the commissioner for Information, Ehiedu Charles Aniagwu.
That the 21st National Sports Festival hosted in Asaba never experienced the kind of negative reports mostly associated with games of this caliber was all due to the perfect way the commissioner for Information related with the journalists that came for the games. He has now set a very big standard for persons who will be manning that same position during subsequent sports festival in Nigeria.
So, while the success story of the 21st National Sports Festival in Asaba, Delta state is been talked about all over the world, the role of the commissioner for Information and Chairman of the Media committee, Ehiedu Charles Aniagwu must never be forgotten.