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Sports Minister, Solomon Dalong on Monday has insisted that the Super Eagles of Nigeria will still ahead with its friendly with the Congolese national team despite the prevalence of EBola in that country.
Dalong stated this while briefing State House Correspondents shortly after meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
World Health Organization ( WHO) recently alerted of the prevalence of the disease in the DR Congo where about 14 persons have died while several others have also been diagnosed with the deadly Ebola virus.
WHO,s reports indicates that although the threat is high locally, the risks of international spread outside the region remains low.
According to the Minister, “Nigeria is going to play the friendly with DRC”
He disclosed that the issues have been discussed with the Federal Ministry of Health, with the World Health Organization in participation and we have reviewed the situation and received adequate information about it.
He noted however, that a number of measures have been put in place to protect both the players, officials and spectators.
” We have agreed on a number of measures which include that, the DRC team is coming through a chartered flight and those coming for the match will be using that chartered flight and they would have been screened from the DRC and they will be screened here in Nigeria.
“There is going to be no any other person that is going to be admitted using any other means of transportation for the match. We also discovered that the Ebola outbreak is limited to a particular place and it has not escalated.
” So, we wouldn’t want to run the risk of setting a precedent of which we will later be victim.
He declared that other strict policies have also been introduced to ensure that the match takes place and the match will take place.
He also noted that the team has no funding problems as funds from FIFA and from CAF are being properly deployed while the one from the federal government is going to compliment our actual participation in Russia.
“So we have funds from different sources to prepare. What we need now is the participation proper for the tournament and it is going to come from the government. So it is not actually affecting our preparation”
“I briefed the President about further friendlies we have ahead and the need for the president to mobilise more support for the team.
” On the approved budget, I informed him that we have not gotten the releases and we asked him to intervene so that the funds can be released because we have gotten all our funds from FIFA, from CAF, we have had a dinner for the team, our donors have redeemed their pledges but on the side of government we need to round it up and the president has assured he was going to do something about it immediately to ensure that that gap is closed”
Also speaking on the chances of the Super Eagles at event he assured that the country’s national team will do well.
” We are going to Russia as contestants and not as participants. As to at what stage will Nigeria will reach this time, we are not going there to end mid way, we are going there for the cup and we will do everything possible within our best to make sure that we get to realise our ambitions.”
” I am satisfied with their preparation. This is because the grand rule I gave was that the National Technical Adviser should be given a free hand to determine the team at every stage, no interferences, nobody should even suggest anything to him. So that is his judgement”
Tony Ailemen, Abuja
