Nigeria has a new sports minister in the person of Mr. Solomon Dalong and the siege and suspense is now over. In my view it is not just having a minister but what kind of minister is he and the legacy he hopes to leave behind in sports.The issue and question now facing the sports fraternity is will this minister be different from the previous ones? Over the years, Nigeria has witnessed the existence of "Minister of Football" and not "Minister of Sports" except in the era of late Ishaya Mark Aku. Will this trend change or continue time will tell and this opinion depends on the policies Mr Solomon Dalong will bring on board. Over the years, other sports have suffered neglect and inferiority complex with athletes potentials never explored. Quite worrisome is that our country men and women are changing nationalities just to have the platform to showcase their God giving talent and if nothing is done soon, we will have brain drain in sports. Come to think of it, Football has only one medal while sports like swimming, boxing, wrestling and weightlifting have medals attach to them. I hope the new minister will see the Economics of Sports by taking advantage of the huge employment opportunities they will provide for our youths. I expect the minister to look into upgrading sports in our school curriculum and catching them young at the grassroots level. The minister has a lot of responsibilities resting on his shoulders and I hope he gets the right hands to assist him in developing our sports industry.
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