In a creative and patriotic fashion, the Chairman of Shongom Local Government, Hon. Yohanna Nahari has organized a football tournament for the talented, energetic and vibrant youths in the ten wards of Shongom Local Government.
The Tournament, asides helping to mend fences and heal wounds occasioned by communal clashes and ethnic hostilities that had afflicted some communities in Shongom Local Government, aims to develop football talents.
A total of twenty (20) Clubs will battle it out for the coveted Overall Best Trophy with two clubs drawn from each of the ten wards of Shongom Local, namely; Boh, Kulishin, Lapan, Lalaipido, Gwandum, Gundali, Burak, Bangunji, Kushi and Filiya.
As a way of incentivizing the tournament, each participating team gets a new set of football jerseys whilst first position holders get the sum of two hundred thousand naira (N200, 000); second place (runners up) will get hundred thousand (N100, 000) and the third place winners get the sum of fifty thousand naira only (N50,000).
Similarly, other mouth-watering prizes await players who display exceptional footballing talents such as; the best player of the tournament, the best goalkeeper and a host of other categories with dazzling prize packages.
The best part of this creative initiative, is Mr. Nahari's plan to pioneer a standing football team for Shongom Local Government by handpicking exceptional players from the 20 Clubs that will subsequently compete in big arenas and tournaments on behalf of the entire local government.
These best legs and minds, asides enjoying the prestigious opportunity of playing as Shongom United Football Club, will see themselves plying their trade in other Nigerian top clubs and even in clubs abroad.
With the commercial success of football globally, the move has been described by the NFF, pundits and observers of developments within the Gombe South corridor as an unprecedented milestone capable of promoting footballing business.
Mr. Nahari's manifest intentions are rooted in the desire to see greater unity, team spirit and camaraderie amongst youths from all ten constituencies of Shongom Local Government.
In his words, "I want us to concentrate on things that unite us rather than things that divide us and football is one big international game that has helped the world to come together as one".
Mr. Nahari also asserts, "Already, the youths in my local government are the best any leader can pray for - they are cerebral, energetic, hardworking and super talented, in fact, they are more precious than gold and investing in them is my core mission because it will yield great dividends and do a great world of good for themselves, their families, the local government and the state at large".
Talking about the vast opportunities for wealth creation, Mr Nahari says, "many nations of the world are building fortunes and making billions of dollars from football hence if we can take a cue from them we will create wealth for our communities and break from the shackles of over-dependence on federal allocations generated through crude oil sales".
The District Head of Shongom, speaking on behalf of the District and Ward Heads of the ten wards in Shongom Local Government, has lauded the extraordinary efforts put in place by Hon. Yohanna Nahari to unite the youths and harness their burgeoning talents in football. He also asserted that the tournament is both historic and epoch-making as no chairman or sole administrator has ever done that in over two decades of the existence of Shongom Local Government except Mr. Nahari.
The youths themselves are so excited for the opportunity to live their footballing dreams, "we have been yearning for these kinds of innovative and disruptive ideas for us to maximize our skills and build our communities. We are energetic, driven, fast, and talented and we couldn't be more excited and thankful to Mr. Yohanna Nahari for this wonderful thinking and execution - posterity will never forget this forward thinking initiative"
The news of this football tournament is making the rounds and permeating every nook and cranny of Gombe State with many people describing the initiative as "thinking out of the box by a sitting local government chairman that is quite rare".
As the youths interact and form bonds in the course of these games, Mr Nahari expresses confidence that the communities in Shongom Local Government will become more like a close knit family with high senses of love and respect for one another. He strongly believes that ethnic hostilities and unnecessary skirmishes will become a thing of the past and would never see the light of day again.
As the final game of the tournament will be played this December, it is hoped that positive news will trail its aftermath in respect to unity and footballing breakthroughs for bright prospects during the tournament.
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