Nwifuru urges Ebonyi indigenes to invest in people

Governor Francis Nwifuru of Ebonyi State on Wednesday urged well-meaning individuals from the state to invest in the people as the government cannot do it all.

Nwifuru stated this during the final match of the 2024 Darlington Ugota Unity Cup held at Onueke township stadium in Ezza South Local Government Area of the state and commended the initiator of the competition for investing in his people.

The Governor, represented by the commissioner for Youth and Sports Development, Mr. Richard Idike, reiterated the state’s government commitment to promoting sports activities to create employment opportunities for the Youths and generate revenues for players and investors.

“To us, sports used to be just for fun, but now we have realized that it’s financially attractive; that is why today we have established the Abakaliki football club, and it is sponsored by the state,” Nwifuru noted.

“All the financial requirements for the club activities for the year have been approved by the state, and this is to demonstrate that the current government is committed to promoting sports in the state.”

Sponsor of the tournament, Engr Ugota, said that he has launched a new football club, known as ‘Esthington FC’ in Ebonyi State, South East, Nigeria, adding that the initiative was aimed at raising talented young players that could compete and feature in the world football arena.

He also revealed plans to establish a sports academy and build a stadium in Ezza South Local Government Area where the young talents would be trained in professional football.

He however stated that his intention for organizing the football tournament was to observe the performance of players to help develop their talents and export football stars through the Esthington Football Academy.

The winners of the senior cadre, the Green Revolution FC, took home the grand prize of N2million, while the 1st and 2nd runners-up made home with N1.5 and N1million respectively.

In the junior category, the Bombers of Amudo FC were awarded the sum of N700,000 while the 1st and 2nd runners-up were awarded the sums of N500,000 and N300,000 respectively.