Sports Vital Tool for Curbing Youth Restiveness – Sports Enthusiast

A Sports Enthusiast and Businessman, Mr Tijani Remilekun, has said that engaging youths in sporting activities will go a long way in curbing restiveness and other social vices among them.

Remilekun, who sponsored the maiden Ijesha Grand Marathon, made the remarks during the Osun Sports Writers’ Association of Nigeria (SWAN) monthly stakeholders’ forum, held on Thursday at Osogbo Township Stadium.

“I will like to appeal to our people to get involved in sports, either as a participant or an investor, so as to curb the growing youth restiveness in the country.

“The idea behind organising the Ijesha marathon was to get youths in the state involved in sports, as a way of curbing the restiveness noticed among them.

“We believe that if the youth are engaged and empowered through sports, it will create a safer environment for everyone,” he said.

Remilekun, however, called on the state government to develop sports infrastructure in the state.

He said that lack of infrastructure for sports training was a serious setback for sport lovers

Remilekun noted that lack of adequate sports facilities and infrastructure for training affected the state contingents at the just-concluded National Sports Festival in Edo, where the state had a poor outing.

“We want the state government to build a stadium in Ilesha and other parts of the state to further promote sports in the state.

“People of Ilesa, where I hail from, do not engage in sports, because there is no stadium. It is only in Osogbo, the state capital, where we have a stadium that people do sports.

“Government needs to do more in the area of sports development as a way of empowering the youth and promoting unity,” he said.

Remilekun said that he had met with the Gov. Gboyega Oyetola on the development of sports infrastructure in the state, added that he (governor) had assured him of working on his proposal.