Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso

By Ibrahim Shuaibu

Kano State Government has announced car gifts to all the players of Kano Pillars FC as reward for winning the 2012 Nigerian Premier League (NPL). Also, members of the Kano Pillars Basketball team also got N250, 000 each for emerging runners-up in the national male basketball league.

Similarly, Kano Para Soccer team players got N100, 000 each while Kano Scrabble team members each got N150, 000.

Team officials and other athletes who excelled in national and international competitions were also rewarded with N100, 000 each for their efforts.

Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso announced these cash gifts at a reception for the athletes at the Government House in Kano. He said the gifts were meant to further encourage them to make the government and citizens of Kano proud.

The governor said his administration intends to exploit the sports potentials of youths in Kano, as well as a means of youth empowerment.

Governor Kwankwaso stressed that given the teeming population of able-bodied young men and women in the state, Kano was positioned to compete favourably in all sports, if given necessary encouragement and support.

He hinted that his administration was now focused on the development of the first sports academy in the state at Kura, besides uplifting the facilities at the Kofar Na’isa Sports Complex to encourage positive physical activity.

According to him, attention is also being paid to improving schools’ sports in Kano with a view to fostering sports development from the grassroots.

Speaking earlier, the state Commissioner for Information, Youths, Sports and Culture, Prof. Umar F. Jibril explained that what has been achieved in the area of sports in Kano was a vindication of the administration’s commitment to sports development.