SWAN Calls for Recognition, Support for Nigerian Sports Journalists.
By Adewale Owoade
The Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) has urged the National Sports Commission (NSC) and other stakeholders to recognise and reward the contributions of Nigerian sports journalists, who have played a vital role in promoting sports development in the country.
In a statement signed by Secretary-General Ambassador Ikenna Okonkwo on behalf of President Mr. Isaiah Benjamin, SWAN decried the neglect of sports journalists by key actors in the Nigerian sports industry.
President Benjamin noted that sports journalists face numerous challenges, including financial constraints, harsh weather conditions, and associated risks, yet they are often treated with disdain by administrators.
The SWAN President cited the recent 2024 CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) in Morocco, where over 25 Nigerian sports journalists attended the tournament through personal funding, without institutional or governmental sponsorship.
He emphasised that journalists play a crucial role in amplifying the successes of athletes and teams, and their contributions deserve recognition.
President Benjamin urged the NSC, Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), and other federations to prioritize inclusive planning and investment in the welfare and integration of sports journalists as core stakeholders.
He stressed that the media’s role in sports development is foundational and deserves acknowledgment.
”Journalists pay their way through to attend and cover proceedings at competitions, face harsh conditions, and associated risks, yet administrators and others see and treat them with disdain.
” It’s time for sports administrators to recognise the value of sports journalists and include them in key decision-making processes.” he said.
President Benjamin commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, state governors, and past Nigerian leaders for rewarding athletes and technical officials with cash, houses, and national honours for their achievements.
“Yes, the athletes and technical officials deserve to be rewarded and celebrated. However, journalists as humans, who have shown greater dedication in championing the sporting, nay economic growth for Nigeria, deserve more.
”In other climes, the government, corporate organisations, and sports bodies do so much in ensuring that the sporting media are taken care of one way or the other, but in Nigeria, even the sports professionals, including highly placed officials at the then Ministry of Sports, now National Sports Commission (NSC), see media as a mere appendage—which ought not to be so.
”Most times, during the planning and execution of sporting programmes and activities, the administrators intentionally sideline the media,” he said.
Referring again to the trend of exclusion, Benjamin questioned the motives of administrators who rely on the media during personal crises but shun them in institutional engagements.
“Why will the sports administrators act as though sports journalists don’t matter to them, yet they run to same media whenever they are under pressure for certain personal aggrandizement?
”Why does the claim of ‘no funds’ always rear up when the media is meant to be part of crucial events, yet the administrators find ways of taking care of their continuous comfort zones?
“In recent times, the neglect has taken a new dimension with NSC top hierarchy repeatedly excluding SWAN, and indeed sports writers, from key national and international sporting engagements,” he said.
