The new National Sports Commission (NSC) Chairman, who has now subsumed the office of the Minister of Sports, Mallam Shehu Dikko at the MTN Foundation 20th anniversary in the Abuja Sheraton Hotel and Towers on Wednesday with Chairman of MTN, Engr. Ernest Ndukwe and others.
From Clement Nwankpa Jr
The new National Sports Commission (NSC) Chairman, who has now subsumed the office of the Minister of Sports, Mallam Shehu Dikko was at the MTN Foundation 20th anniversary at the Abuja Sheraton Hotel and Towers on Wednesday. Here are five points to note from his involvement at the event.
(1) HE KNOWS WHAT TO DO
There was an earlier engagement at the Commission’s conference room. While he was also very interested in this function, he kept tabs on the MTN Foundation event at Sheraton Hotel. His protocol man monitored situations at Sheraton while Dikko occasionally glanced at his wrist watch. He ultimately fast-tracked the question-and-answer session at the conference room on the premise that he had another function to catch up with. Soon he was off.
This is surely a man who understands what he has been saddled with and knows the exact events that will serve as clinchers. From all indications, he wasn’t kidding with this one.
(2) …AND ISN’T MORE INTERESTED IN THE RAZZMATAZZ
Yes, the NSC helmsman understands the importance of being at this MTN event, but wasn’t going to make a show of it. He was more interested in the engagements, networking and private meetings afterwards and not to announce himself as the NSC chairman. Hence after due recognitions and he was pressed for a podium appearance/speech, he declined.
Anyone who knows Dikko well enough will note that he is not one lacking for words at such glitzy events that showcased speeches on economy, entrepreneurship etc. But he quietly declined a public speech on the premise that he had slated more extensive private engagements with key corporate entities and individuals afterwards. For him, that was more important than dazzling with the microphone.
(3) WALKING THE TALK
A day earlier, while meeting with the Nigeria University Games Association (NUGA) delegation, Dikko had pointed out that “eighty to ninety percent of problems in sports will be solved if proper funding is put in place.” Here he was, practicing exactly what he was preaching. He didn’t want to stop at that speech, he set machinery in motion to access that which will solve majority of the problems in the sector (funding).
He wasn’t going to get the funds from that beautiful speech in the conference room, as the resources were in the pockets of the corporate world out there. This was a place to engage those who would help fund his lofty plans for the sector and he had to make the most of it. In his reckoning, there wouldn’t be another MTN Foundation 20th anniversary, so he had to key into this one. He had to match words with action.
(4) PATIENCE AS A VIRTUE
This was an event that spanned about two panel sessions, contributions and interludes, so it wasn’t a brief one. But Dikko was there from the moment he stepped in till the end and he was part of all the sessions. The key takeaway here is patience, a virtue he will need in very high dose if he is going to succeed in this assignment. Naturally, there should be the temptation to leave after the first panel session or somewhere during the second session as he had other matters to attend to at the office, but he waited till the end.
(5) EYES ON THE GOAL
Dikko is a go-getter, that’s for sure. One of the features that helps him attain his goals is FOCUS. He sets his eyes on something and never looks away until he gets it. This has been his disposition so far. He was involved in the drafting of the NSC bill and knows exactly what is involved. He keeps saying that the task given to him by the president is like telling him to “implement what he had drafted”. He knows where and how to get what he wants, and has focused on that goal.
