ABUJA — The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the issuance of provisional licenses for the establishment of 12 new private universities across the country including the first Sports University in Nigeria.
Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, disclosed this to State House correspondents at the end of the Council’s meeting, presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday in Abuja.
“The proposed private universities are Pen Resource University Gombe, Gombe State, Al-Ansar University, Maiduguri, Borno State, Margaret Lawrence I -University, Delta State, and Khalifa Ishaku Rabiu University Kano, Kano State.
“Sports University, Idumuje Ugboko, Delta State, Bala Ahmed University Kano, Saisa University of Medical Sciences and Technology, Sokoto State, Nigerian-British University, Hasa, Abia State, and Peter University, Acina-Onene, Anambra State as well as Newgate University, Minna, Niger State, the European University of Nigeria in Duboyi, Abuja and the North-West University, Sokoto,” the Minister said.
The Sports University is founded by Prince Chinedu Munir Nwoko popularly known as Ned Nwoko and located at his hometown, Idumuje Ugboko in Delta State.
Twenty-three years ago, Ned Nwoko conceived the idea of having the Sports University in Nigeria. As a member of the House of Representatives, he sponsored a bill for its establishment. The bill, however, was not passed.
Today, a dream that started many years has come to reality and fruition.
Nwoko while speaking to journalists, expressed delight in the approval saying the university will be a veritable ground for selection of sports men and women that will represent Nigeria at local, continental and intercontinental competitions.
He said, “It took me a long time to get to this point, but I can speak confidently about this now. I went to China, Russia, America, and England and came back to put all the sports courses together.
“I realized years ago when I was at the University of Lagos studying that Nigeria was behind in every sphere – internationally speaking. When we have Olympic sports, how well do we do as a country? Almost zero performance. Nigeria is 62 years from independence having two gold medals, one from Chioma Ajunwa and one from Kanu Nwankwo.
“Beyond Africa, Michael Phelps has 21 goal medals alone. These were achieved because of practice. But Nigeria will wait for a month or two for the Olympics before going to the camp. And I ask what can you achieve in a month with someone who has been practicing for years or all his life?
“So, I said to myself this is what we don’t have in Nigeria, and Africa, so I thought I should do something like this to allow the young ones to do what they love doing.”
On the level of readiness for the take-off of the institution, Nwoko said the university will take off in September 2022 to offer professional first-degree certificates in sports-related fields.
According to the aerial pictures of the proposed university he released, the school project has a three-floor academic building, top-scale art library, medical centers, Olympic-size swimming pool, and standard pitches for football, hockey, and baseball.
According to the design, the varsity also has a five-star hotel, administrative blocks, lecture hall, canteen, and junior staff quarters all nearing completion.
The name of the institution is STARS (Sports, Technology, Art, Research and Science) University.
Ezinwanne Onwuka, senior staff reporter and columnist with WAP is a Nigerian-based writer and content developer. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from the prestigious University of Nigeria, Nsukka. Her interests include reading, writing, researching and graphic designing.
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