The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Mr Andrew Adejo, says sports will continue to form part of school curricula as the government strives to reposition the education sector in the country.
Adejo made this known while speaking with newsmen in Abuja on the forthcoming Federal Education Sector Games scheduled to begin on Monday in the Nasarawa State University in Keffi.
He said the ministry has consistently been at the forefront of the campaign for the promotion of sports as part of the school system.
”Just like the schools and tertiary institutions in the country enjoy the Academical football competitions, Polytechnic Games, College of Education Games and the University Games, so shall the staff of the ministry and its agencies, henceforth be enjoying FEDUGAM.
“The essence of FEDUGAM in the education sector is to achieve two things.
“First is to make the staff of the ministry and its agencies healthy and second, to create an atmosphere where we leave work, see ourselves, and talk in an atmosphere where we will be able to interact and do sports together.
“Games like Chess and Scrabble help the intellectual ability. While Scrabble helps word ability, chess helps thinking ability.
“We all know the genesis of sports which started from the Roman Empire when people felt that they were too tight and they needed to express themselves and interact with one another.
“The game is to bring everybody working in education together and you discover that in all the primary and secondary school curricular, there is usually a time for sporting activities,” Adejo said.
According to him, the ministry is focusing on creating individuals that are strong and healthy, with sharper brains and then create an atmosphere of camaraderie.
He noted that participants at the Games were strongly aware of the rules which must produce winners and losers, while their actions would be anchored on the spirit of sportsmanship.
“The ministry and its agencies came together in collaboration with the private sector to organise the Games.”
Adejo also said that they have put machinery in place to discourage mercenaries during the games to create a level playing ground for participants.
“We have effective record keeping in civil service, there is a registration process in FEDUGAM and by the time an office sends in the names of their representatives, we will crosscheck the nominal roll of the office.
“If the name of the participant is not on the nominal roll, the person won’t participate; this is to discourage mercenaries from participating.
“Out of 24 agencies under the ministry, about 16 have so far registered,” Adejo added.
