Oshodi Speaks On What Inspired Him Contest For NTTF President.

The newly elected President of Nigeria Table Tennis Federation,Wahid Enitan Oshodi, speaks on what inspired him to contest for NTTF President.

1. What inspired you to contest for NTTF President?

There was a lot of pressure from stakeholders who felt that based on the good work we had done in Table tennis in Lagos State over the years, that I probably could assist in transforming the face of the game and bring the necessary change to return the national team to the top table of World tennis. The support of many credible people and their pledges to support the game alongside the persistence of many of the countries top players that I run made it very difficult for me to refuse. The challenge is one that we hope that the effective team we have now built in the Federation will overcome.

2. Table tennis is indeed down now in the country and how do you intend to lift it?

Like I have previously said, the first step will be to go back to our youth development programmes. There is undoubtedly so much talent in a country the size of NIGERIA. We now have to go back to some tried and tested methods to enable us discover the abundant talents at a much younger age so we can harness them quickly and get our top coaches working with this players. We also have to provide tables and other equipment to enable the young children in our schools play. We will be working through the members of the Federations from the six zones and the state coaches in the various states to get to the schools all over the country. We have to stage more competitions at the state, zonal and national levels. This will help our coaches see the players and assess those players who have that extra talent which will take them to the top of the game. There has to be greater coordination between the state associations and the Federation. Luckily having served at all levels of administration of the game I know the type of problems the Associations and the clubs face. We have to work very hard to enable table tennis regain its glory.

3. The game used to be popular but how do you intend to popularise it?

We have to stage more competitions. We have to expose our top players. We must engage with the sporting public and get them back into the stadiums to watch and support our young players. it is the fans and the media that will make stars of this players. it is not encouraging playing before empty stands. we need to fill the stadiums and to do this we have to package our competitions in a way in which they are sufficiently attractive to the fans such that we can lure the fans away from their televisions and football. We obviously cannot compete with football and the EPL but we can ensure that when the fans are not watching football they are watching Table tennis. It is a fact that in the seventies the likes of Atanda Musa, Obisanya, Lasisi Kasali, Late Yomi Bankole, Olawunmi Majekodunmi, Ethel Jacks, Cecilia Arinye where household names and were as popular as the likes of Christian Chukwu and Segun Odegbami. That is what we aim to do and with the help of our friends in the private sector we are sure we can achieve this. We are already in talks with the media like Supersport, LTV, TVC, NTA about screening our events. We must catch up with the times and give the fans what they want. We cannot continue to say that's the way we have always done it. Our old ways are no longer succeeding and we must modernise in a bid to be a relevant sport once again.

4. Coaching is one of the problems bedevilling the game, what are your plans to improve the lots of the tacticians?

Our coaches have been subject of criticism and I think this is very unfair. Our coaches are working under very sad conditions. Most of them get their NIS certificates and thereafter we do not assist them to further their knowledge and catch up with modern techniques. We cannot blame people that we have not equipped to do their work. We have to improve the lot of the Coaches and ensure that they are constantly being retrained themselves.  I have already mandated the Federations Chief Coach Nosiru Bello to come up with necessary international courses to improve the lot of our coaches. We must also tap into the experience of some our more experienced coaches with regards to training the younger ones. We also have to encourage some of our top Professionals who are coming to the end of their careers to pass on the knowledge they have garnered over the years to to the upcoming Coaches. We have some talented young Coaches and we must also assist them develop. To this end I must commend the developmental work being done by some of ouryoung Coaches like Dotun Omoniyi, Samson Ajayi, Razaq Hamzat. they must be encouraged and I am assured that the Chief Coach working with the ATTF and ITTF will  be doing his utmost to continue to encourage this young coaches.

5. How do you intend to combine your work as commissioner with being NTTF boss?

I have stressed this in the past that for me being in sports cannot be classified as work. I love my sports and I have a great passion for the young athletes and thecoaches that I work with on a day to day basis. Of course i could not do this without the great support I receive from my boss His Excellency Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola SAN.  His Excellency is seriously committed to the growth of sports in Nigeria and this has made our work manifestly easier. Furthermore the fact that His Excellency himself is a multi talented sportsman and understands how sports can be used to transform society is of great importance in attaining the goals we have set out. I believe the support that we receive with regards to sports development in Lagos is second to none in Nigeria and this is why we continue to improve. We have set ourselves a task of meeting world standards in sports and that I believe is the greatest driver for us in Lagos and I hope we can translate this to the Table Tennis Federation. Furthermore I have an excellent team working with me in Lagos and their support is invaluable in succeeding n the work hat lies ahead.

6. Fund is key, how do you intend to raise fund to prosecute your programmes?

I think the issue of funding of sports is quite key to why so many people supported my candidacy. As far back is 2000  as Board member LSSC then Chairman LSTTA I  had realised that government alone cannot adequately fund sports with the resources at its disposal. Consequently I have always actively sought partnerships with the organised private sector and generous hearted individuals who appreciate the part sports can play in the development and growth of this young athletes. We have started actively engaging the private sector and we are quite hopeful that in the next couple of months we will be announcing long term partnerships that will support the growth of the game. Funding is not only in monetary terms. We are looking at media partnerships, and partnerships in kind. We are looking at all areas that can help the growth of the game. We have a lo of work to do to enable us catch up with the world. We must give our players the right equipment, we must provide tables, allowances for our top players. We need to stage international competitions here in Nigeria so that our players can test themselves against the best in Africa, the Commonwealth and the world. All this will cost money but we are quietly confident that we the plans we have we can successfully attract partnerships for the good of the game.

7. What is major thing you intend to do to woo back sponsors and fans to the game?

I have stated in the past that it is futile to believe that you can attract Sponsors without giving them commensurate benefits for the money they spend. Sponsors are in main business people and they have their eyes on things that will enhance their sales. We must attract sufficient publicity for our Sponsors. We must package our competitions in ways that will show off our Sponsors in the best light. We must give our sponsors the option of using our top international players to affiliate and promote their products. In doing this we must also ensure transparency and accountability in our dealings with them. This is a reputation that we have built working with our sponsors over the years and we must continue to account for all funds we receiveand direct the funds to purposes for which they are meant. We must also engage the State governments for whatever assistance they can give us. I must commend His Excellency the Cross River State Governor for all the support extended to the Federation through our Vice President Hon Orok Duke. And of course my Governor His Excellency Babatunde Raji Fashola SAN. it is this kind of invaluable support we will be actively seeking as it enables us expose our players to international tournaments which are key to their development.

8. How do you intend to halt the dominance of Egypt in Africa?

Lekan I have told you many times that in any sphere of life that for you to get to the top legitimately you must be innovative and work very hard. Firstly we must strengthen our developmental programmes, empower our coaches and equip our players properly. We must also see how we can assist our top players. But I think importantly we must focus on three things. Improvement of our discovery programmes to enable get our talent at a much earlier age, improvement of our coaches knowledge and early exposure of our best young talents to international competitions. Egypt has been working very hard for many years with the best equipment but I am sure that with hard work and our talent pool we can regain our number one position in Afica.

I am very excited by some of the talent in our cadet category. Young Tosin Oribamise from Ekiti state is the brightest talent I have seen in many years in table tennis since the great Bose Kaffo. With the right coaching in place I believe she is a future African Champion. It is talent like hers that encourages me to do the work  i do in table tennis.

9. Do you think we can reclaim our place at the All Africa Games after being displaced by Egypt in 2011?

The work we do in the next one year will bear us out at the next All African games. I believe  that if we can combine the experience of some of our players like Toriola, Offiong, Oshonaike and the youthful dynamism of Quadri, Ajetunmobi and the excellent skills of young Ojo Onaolapo coupled with some other brighter talents we can regain our place. But you must note that Egypt, Algeria, Tunisia and countries like South Africa are not relaxing. we must train better and we must attend international competitions. Our players must get the Pro Circuit so that they can test themselves against the best. You will recall that it was when we sponsored Quadri on the pro tour tihat he managed to secure a good professional contract in Portugal. We must find ways to get our best players on the tour.

10. Are you planning to have coaches for different categories - Cadet, Junior and Senior as well as male and female? 

The Federations technical committee will be advising on the best way to go about revamping our coaching, after reviewing the current practices in place. It is obvious that some things might need to change, but this will be within the purview of the technical team. We must get to work quickly as there is a massive amount to be done and all the players both foreign and locally based are looking up to us to accelerate the pace of good change, turn things around and ensure the continued growth of table tennis in Nigeria.

The staff of the secretariat are already working on the calendar for the rest of the year and we are also preparing our calendar for 2014 sufficiently early so that our sponsors can be carried along so they will have us in mind when preparing their budgets for next year. 

We will also be working closely with our friends in the media at large all over the country to ensure that our programmes are actively publicised so that we can rebuild the support base for table tennis in Nigeria. I am quietly confident that the current Board of the NTTF has the knowledge, capacity and commitment to take table tennis to the top once again.