Nigeria’s failed bid to host the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) was not a priority for the country, according to the Chairman House of Representatives Committee on Sports, Hon. Ekene Adams Abubakar.
Nigeria put in a joint bid with neighbours Benin Republic but lost to the joint bid of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
The winners were of the 2025 and 2027 editions of Africa’s flagship football tournament were announced on Wednesday after the voting session by members of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) committee, led by its President, Patrice Motsepe at Marriott Hotel in the Zamalek area of downtown Cairo.
Morocco unanimously won the bid for 2025 edition to replace Guinea, which had been stripped of the hosting rights last October due to fears about the readiness of facilities.
For the 2025 edition, Morocco won by 22 votes to replace Guinea, with their challengers, including Algeria who officially withdrew from the race on Tuesday evening. CAF rejected the Algeria’s decision.
Morocco had unsuccessfully bid for the FIFA World Cup five times and the North African nation will see the decision as a boost to their hopes of co-hosting the 2030 World Cup with Portugal and Spain.
Abubakar, who represents Chikun/Kajuru Federal Constituency of Kaduna State, said: “We are not kicking against bidding for the Nations Cup, but I am against the timing of such a step in relation to our current economic realities, which every one of us is not ignorant of.
“As someone who has the fear of God, I can tell you for free that now that we are talking about hosting the Nations Cup, it has to do with building new facilities, and renovating stadiums but all of these are only beneficial to us, the stakeholders and politicians to make more money.
“I don’t think we mean well for the common man if this is our current priority as a government”.
The Labour Party representative further said: “The common man can hardly feed three times a day with the effect of the subsidy and it will not be good to hide under the guise of sports and things like this to enrich ourselves at the expense of Nigerians.
“For example, the palliatives the National Assembly approved for Nigerians to cushion the effect of the subsidy hardship has not gotten to Nigerians across the country and the only thing we the stakeholders are concerned about now is wanting to host the AFCON.
“And after spending so much money to host this AFCON, we will then leave the facilities dilapidated as usual and the lack of maintenance story will continue, which another government will come again to spend so much on and nothing meaningful would have changed.
“As a lawmaker representing the people, I must also stress that I am an apostle of good change and will not support anything I know will not benefit the common man”.
While the bidding process was on, Motsepe made a statement that counted against the joint Nigeria/Benin Republic hosting attempt. “Each region will have a chance to organise a Cup of Nations; we cannot assign the organisation of the tournament successively to the same region”, the South African said.
Like Nigeria and Benin Republic, 2023 host nation, Côte d’Ivoire is located in West Africa. But CAF contradicted itself having earlier chosen another West Africa country, Guinea to host the 2025 AFCON, which would have meant the same subregion hosting the competition back-to-back.
Nigeria’s failure to win the bid comes after the Minister of Sports Development, Senator John Enoh arrived in Egypt on Tuesday with representatives of the Nigeria Football Federation to witness the bidding process.
Nigeria hosted and won the continent’s flagship competition in 1980 with the then President Shehu Shagari handing over the trophy to captain Christian Chukwu following a 3-0 thrashing of Algeria with a brace by Segun Odegbami and a goal by Muda Lawal.
Nigeria co-hosted with Ghana in 2000 but lost on penalties to Cameroon in the final at the National Stadium in Lagos.
The Chairman of the 2010 AFCON Bid Committee, Hon. Lumumba Dah Adeh said he was disappointed that for the second time, Nigeria failed to win the bid to host the continental showpiece.
He told Daily Trust that it takes a lot to present a strong bid that would convince CAF.
The former lawmaker from Plateau State said: “This is the second time we have failed to win the bid to host the AFCON. In 2010, when I was the chairman of the bid committee, we lost to Angola because the then (CAF) president, Isa Hayatou, who wanted another term in office, desperately needed the votes from the Southern Africa block. Our bid was no doubt well packaged but politics consumed it.
“I doubt if those who handled the present bid did exactly what we were able to do in our time. Was there the much needed government approval and support?
“There is no need to cry over spilled milk but the government can ask questions to find out how the bidding process was handled”.
A former Katsina State Director of Sports, Aliyu Kofar-Soro said he was disappointed that Nigeria failed to win the bid because it would have helped to improve the economy of most Nigerians.
According to him, Nigerians’ micro businesses would have witnessed a boost due to the influx of visitors into the country within the period of the championship.
“I was actually looking forward to the emergence of Nigeria as the host of the 2025 AFCON. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen.
“If it were successful, Nigerian businessmen would have benefitted immensely. The AFCON is a big tournament that usually attracts so many fans across the continent.
“However, I am not too disappointed because Nigeria’s economy is ailing and the money that would have gone into organising the championship can be channeled into projects that can help alleviate the sufferings of the citizens”, Kofar-Soro said.
Credit: Daily Trust
