By Afusat Agunbiade-Oladipo
Ilorin, Oct. 18, 2025 (NAN)The Executive Chairman, Kwara Sports Commission, Bola Magaji, has commended Gov. AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara for reviving sports activities in the state through significant infrastructural development.
Magaji made the commendation on Saturday during a media tour organised by the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Kwara Council.
According to him, the governor has made remarkable contributions to the development of sports infrastructure in the state.
“I can proudly say I was a founding member of this complex in 1977, and I was already working here at the time. What I have seen today is monumental.
Squash Courts of Kwara Stadium
“This facility was abandoned for years, but the governor believed that such a legacy should not be left to decay.
“He came to our aid and a lot has changed. From the gate, you can see the roads are now tarred and most of the buildings have been renovated or reconstructed,” he said.
He described the governor’s intervention as a true example of leadership.
“Leadership is about considering the general public, not personal gain. What the governor has done here is a legacy,” Magaji added.
He said that the facility was originally built by former military Gov. George Innih and following the high cost of maintenance, no subsequent administration had managed to sustain or improve it, until now.
“The governor has helped us in terms of roads, equipment and buildings,” he stressed.
Magaji highlighted the administration’s support for athletes, many of whom have now gained national and international exposure.
“A lot of our athletes have been sponsored to travel abroad. Opportunities like this were never available before,”he said.
Mogaji said that a six-year-old boy from Offa who represented the state in scrabble among 180 participants won, adding that wouldn’t have been possible without the government’s support for sports.
He mentioned Kwara athletes who had represented Nigeria internationally, including Eniola Bolaji, who won a medal at the Olympics in para-badminton.
“Before now, our athletes were leaving to represent other states, but today they are proudly representing Kwara and winning medals,” Magaji stated.
“Many of our young people are now engaged in various sporting activities instead of cultism or hooliganism,”he said.
He said that no stadium in any state can match Kwara stadium, adding that all sports are concentrated there, except golf.
“We can host 32 different sports here without needing to go elsewhere,” he said.
He concluded by revealing plans to build a mini golf course to further expand the state’s sports offerings.
