Get Guardian on Google• Akpabio promises immediate payment as lawmakers demand national recognition for victorious U-17 girls
The Senate has pledged N100 million to Nigeria’s victorious Under-17 women’s football team, the Flamingos, urging the Federal Government to match the gesture with additional rewards.
The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, announced the pledge during plenary, following a motion sponsored by Senator Abdul Ningi seeking adequate recognition and compensation for the players.
“From the National Assembly, even if we do not have anything else to give these children, we will make a token of N100 million to them immediately,” Akpabio declared.
The lawmakers said the team’s achievement deserved national recognition, particularly against the background of disappointments recorded by other national football teams.
Moving the motion, Ningi described the Flamingos’ performance as remarkable, noting that the players were assembled barely six months before the competition.
He said their achievement had given Nigerians something to celebrate, while bringing honour to the country and Africa.
However, he expressed disappointment over what he described as inadequate publicity and official recognition of the team.
Ningi particularly faulted the absence of senior government officials when the players arrived in Nigeria, insisting that their reception did not reflect the significance of their achievement.
Senator Ned Nwoko, who supported the motion, described the players as national heroes, praising their performances against established football nations, including Brazil and the United States.
He urged President Bola Tinubu to accord them national recognition and called on state governors to celebrate players from their respective states.
Another senator highlighted the team’s victory over Japan, describing it as evidence of the potential of Nigerian youths to compete internationally.
Beyond financial rewards, the Senate urged the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) to keep the players together to preserve their understanding and prepare them for future international competitions.
Akpabio, however, warned against allowing the team to disintegrate, saying sustained development could help the players grow into a formidable senior national side.
The senate president also appealed to wealthy Nigerians and business leaders to support the players with additional incentives.
The lawmakers commended Tinubu and the National Sports Commission, particularly its chairman, Malam Shehu Dikko, for their contributions to sports development.
They subsequently congratulated the Flamingos, the Federal Government, the NFF and Nigerians on the team’s achievement.
The senate president directed the clerk of the senate to document the resolutions and contributions made during the debate.
The Flamingos have been receiving encomiums from a grateful country, with many corporate and private individuals pledging diverse financial and other rewards to the girls for winning Africa’s first ever U-17 women’s World Cup crown.
Shortly after the final whistle signaling Nigeria’s triumph in Morocco, one of the team’s supporters, Alhaji Saleh Ahmadu, donated $50,000 to the girls.
Ahmadu made the donation during a reception organised for the girls by the leadership of the National Sports Commission (NSC), in Rabat, on Saturday night.
