The
Nigerian trio of Victor Osimhen, Asisat Oshoala, and Chiamaka Nnadozie, attained
legendary status, with their individual honors at the CAF Awards. Also, the female football team won the Team of
the Year title. Victor Osimhen, won the African Footballer of the Year (Male),
Oshoala, won the female version, and Chiamaka Nnadozie, won the Best African
Female Goalkeeper of the Year. It was a culmination of the great season they
had last season, extending upto the current period. Osimhen helped his team,
Napoli FC win the Italian Scudetto, for the first time after 30 years and was
the highest scorer in last season’s Scudetto. Oshoala helped her team,
Barcelona FC win the female UEFA Champions League and took Nigeria to great
heights in the last Female World Cup Competition. Chiamaka Nnadozie has grown steadily to become amongst the best female goalkeepers in the World and
this was solidified by her feat in the last Female World Cup and the performances
of her club, Paris FC, in last year’s UEFA Champions League.
Legends
must be appreciated and preserved. Brazilian
soccer legend, Pele, was instituted as a national treasure in 1958 and
through the personal invitation of the Cameroonian government, Roger Milla
returned to perform his heroics at the 1990 World Cup. At this phase of
Nigeria’s chequered history, genuine models are needed to galvanize its citizenry
to have a sense of commitment to their nation.
A NEW GENERATION OF ROLE MODELS
The
consequences of their action are that they have raised their profile to become
role models for society, both in character and practice. Oshoala has won this
title for the sixth time and remains Africa’s most decorated female player.
With her astounding success, she stands to remain an inspiration, to arouse the
interest of several female children bound by cultural and religious sentiments.
She remains dignified in extolling the tenets of her religion whilst excelling
in her profession. Her success has broken any barrier and sentiments anyone of
her gender and religion has had about pursuing football, as a career.
Osimhen’s feat has come twenty-four years after Kanu Nwankwo won this award. He has become the beacon for a new
generation of established and upcoming Nigerian players. Beyond football, he
stands to uplift several Nigerians pursuing skill-based professions, outside
Western education. Like Burna
Boy
and WizKid in
music, Osimhen’s success must be used to galvanize the confidence of young
Nigerians about the benefits of using their innate skills, rather than
concentrating their blood and sweat in Nigeria’s decadent educational system,
which continue to churn out jobless graduates!
Chiamaka
Nnadozie has attracted so many accolades from Nigeria, to the extent that it
has been severely suggested that her prowess would solve the inherent
goalkeeping quagmire in the Super Eagles. She’s an excellent shot
stopper, good in one-on-one situations, and an excellent penalty stopper!
The
collective achievements of the Super Falcons must also be commended and the
cumulative benefits must be explored to build a better society for Nigeria. This is the right time for FCMG
organizations and the public sector; to take advantage of using these
individuals as veritable brands to rebuild a nation in search of genuine
models, not tainted by the complex identity that characterizes most successful
people in Nigeria. They must be used as the mouthpiece of the new Nigeria;
espousing and articulating the enterprising society that would help Nigeria
regain her lost dignity amongst the community of nations.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Hi, please let us know how you feel about our article