Nigeria’s Wheelchair Tennis Chief Wants Minister To Save His Sport

IKPO IGBINOBA 

Who is afraid of wheelchair tennis players? Who wants to kill wheelchair tennis in Nigeria? What is the offence of wheelchair tennis players that we are being treated like second class citizens in our own country? These were some of the rhetorical questions an agitated and angry Lateef Shodipo confronted P.M. EXPRESS with in Lagos on Thursday during an interview.

Mr. Shodipo is the second Vice President of the Nigeria Tennis Federation, NTF and  doubles as head of the Wheelchair Tennis Division of the federation.

He was asked to review the past year and project into the New Year. Mr Shodipo said the “Covid 19 pandemic ruined 2020 for sports generally and wheelchair tennis  was not spared”.

“Apart from the CBN Tennis Championships, there was no other event for wheelchair tennis”, he recalled.

The wheelchair tennis chief became emotional when he was asked about his division’s plans and programme for the New Year.

According to him, “As a forward thinking department, we always have developmental programmes for wheelchair tennis but then the truth is that right now, we are being frustrated”. Mr. Shodipo explained

“Do you know that since March of 2020 till today, January 7, 2021, the powers that be have shut us out of the National Stadium, Surulere where we play our tennis.

“At first, we accepted our fate because the whole nation was on a lockdown. That was at the peak of the Covid 19 pandemic”.

“After the Covid 19 lockdown, I approached those in position of authority to allow the Wheelchair tennis players to resume their daily schedule of training but they refused.

“To make the scenario suspicious, our colleagues who play Wheelchair basketball, para table tennis, and powerlifting were allowed to resume their daily routine of training within the same National Stadium in Surulere.

“Why is our story different? So we are now asking the questions, Who is afraid of wheelchair tennis players? Who wants to kill wheelchair tennis in Nigeria? What is the offence of wheelchair tennis players that we are being treated as second class citizens in our own country?”

Mr Shodipo said except for some sinister motive, there was no longer any justification in keeping the wheelchair tennis players outside the National Stadium.

“If they can allow the power lifters, the wheelchair basketball players and the para table tennis players, they should allow us”.He then appealed to the Sports Minister, Mr Sunday Dare to intervene immediately”in the interest of fairplay, justice and more importantly many wheelchair tennis players whose lives were transformed by the sport”.

Aside from laurels that the sport has brought to the country, Mr Shodipo said wheelchair tennis has taken hundreds if not thousands of physically challenged persons off the streets, reformed and empowered them.

He added “Such persons have become useful to themselves and the society instead of being beggars and creating social problems for the country”.

“The minister is our final hope in this matter and I plead with him to act on it with dispatch. Our players have been going through hell not being allowed to do what they enjoy doing most”.