As the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Chairman’s Cup makes headway, Cross River Government has said that the state is fully prepared for the football tournament that is billed to take place in April 2024, across the nation. The Commissioner for Sports Development, Hon. Agnes Atsu, stated this when she received members of the National Organizing Committee for the APC National Chairman’s Cup in her office in Calabar.
Hon. Atsu, while welcoming the committee members, expressed the state’s readiness to host the football competition for the South South zone, adding that Cross River would go as far as making the tournament to be more colourful so as to attract the spotlight.
She expressed confidence in the capacity of the Special Adviser to the Governor on Sports Development, who is the co-chairman of the Local Organizing Committee, to deliver a spectacular tournament.
She then told the delegation that the sports loving governor, Senator Prince Bassey Otu, “is fully ready to host more and more of this kind of tournament in Cross River because he is a sports friendly governor, who has been giving us all the support, and has told us as a ministry to go out there and open Cross River State’s doors onto the sporting world”.
The Commissioner however, informed that the football tournament is open “to all Cross Riverians to participate. It’s not meant for APC members alone. It is for all Nigerians to be part of irrespective of political leanings. We are calling on all Cross Riverians to come and support the tournament. We are mobilizing everybody to come and be a part of it.
“Bring your football teams to come and participate. We don’t want this trophy that came here today to go away from Cross River to another state. We want to keep it. We are calling on our best footballers in the state to come out and express themselves.”
Also speaking, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Sports Development, Mr. Ekanem Ekpenyong, who also doubles as co-chairman of the local organizing committee, assured the delegation that the state would do everything possible to have a hitch-free tournament that would be worthy of commendation.
On his part, leader of the delegation, Amb. Moses Ebahor, said as a father to all Nigerians and lover of sports, the APC National Chairman, Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, felt the need to empower Nigerian youths through sports.
Ebahor, who is the National Coordinator of the APC National Chairman’s Cup and President of Miss Football Nigeria, stated that Calabar was chosen for the flag off and center for the South South zone because, according to him, “Calabar is the home of tourism. It’s the home of football. When the Super Eagles played their qualifying matches here they always won. To us, bringing the opening ceremony to Cross River State and also playing the South south zonal elimination is not out of place.”
He disclosed that in the zonal elimination, 16 teams are expected to play the tournament from any club or football academy, adding that the two teams that would qualify from the South south zone would go ahead to compete in the national final in Abuja. The opening ceremony for the tournament, according to the team lead, is expected to take place on the 22nd of April, 2024 in Calabar.
Shortly after the meeting with the Honourable Commissioner and the SA on Sports Development, the delegation was then led to pay a courtesy visit on the state chairman of the APC, Barr. Alphonsus Eba, who pledged the support of the state chapter of the party towards the success of the tournament.
Highlight of the visit was the presentation of the APC National Chairman’s trophy and a pair of sports wear to the state chairman by the leader of the delegation.