Super Eagles Diary of Uyo: Death on Super Eagles highway

We were just getting to Ohanso in the Ndoki region when the news filtered in that some of our colleagues had been kidnapped on the way to watch the Super Eagles vs Libya game.

At first, the reports were sketchy and we were unsure of what was happening, where it happened or who was involved. We first heard that journalists were kidnapped and we did not know who. Before departure, we had debated on what route to go through. In September, we had this same discussion as Kingsley Olisa insisted we should not go through the Ogoni route, but Abia State. So, we all thought this incident occurred at the Ogoni route.

Then, we checked our various WhatsApp groups and saw that there was a successful rescue attempt, even though one person was shot. Then we heard that this person did not make it, which was sad for me.

Not enough coverage of the issue

Yes, I understand that there are standards and the individuals and families involved need their privacy to be respected, but it bothers me that the media has not given this incident the kind of coverage it should get.

Information is still very sketchy, and even I do not have many details of what happened. We first heard it was staff of Supersport, then we heard it was AfroSport. Later we got the information that one person passed, and then it was three that died, and then back to one person. Even the umbrella body for the profession, the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria, SWAN in a statement described it as a rumoured kidnapped. Wow!

And I can’t wrap my head around why it is not front-burner news in Nigeria and around the world. Could it be because it was not a China Acheru kidnapped, or an Ufuoma Egbamuno, or a Colin Udoh? Would these have given it more attention? I’m just thinking aloud as I ask, “There are many things I do not understand.”

Why I am in a School of thought

Those journalists or broadcasters who were kidnapped were me. They could have been me or any of my friends in that Sienna vehicle. Those kidnapped people were me on February 14, 1998, when I made my first road trip to watch a game, BCC Lions versus Sharks in Gboko, my 234th game on my count. They were me on June 18, 2004, when I got into that FG Onyenwe bus from Ikwerre Road to make a night trip to Jos and from there, Maiduguri, a journey that took me twenty-three hours. That was Elkanemi Warriors vs Dolphins FC, my 427th game.

These people were also me on April 24, 2005, as we returned from Abidjan after a Confederation of African Football, CAF Champions League game against ASEC Mimosas, my 468th game. The AERO Contractors bird we were flying in was so shaken by the turbulence that at some point we thought it was going to crash in the Ocean.

In these trips, you are either taken by bad roads, by gunmen, or by bad airlines. It is a terrible hustle, but we continue.

I used to make lots of road trips to watch either the National Teams or Nigerian clubs. I was crazy about the road trips too. Between 1989 and 2018, 29 years, I watched one thousand games, averaging thirty-four games a year, a chunk of them, road trips.

Since 2018 until now, which is six years, I have watched 121 games, averaging 20 games a year. As I got older, I realised that Nigerian roads were not worth the risk. And I have a family who want to see me back home every time I hit the road.

My heart goes out to the family, loved ones and work colleagues of the deceased, and may God continue to watch our steps in our coming in and going out. These are not the stories we want to hear.

Meeting up with an old schoolmate

Etiene Bob and I

Etiene Bob Akpan was Senior Prefect when I was in Secondary School in 1987. He has been based in Akwa Ibom State for so long and we agreed to meet on this trip. He also played some decent football when we were in Secondary school and was in the school football team too.

He called me up and said he was at the Stadium. As we sat there watching the Eagles train, Etiene said to me, “Is this not the same football that we played in Secondary school?”

I just laughed it out, and he continued, “When we were in Secondary School, how would we have told our parents that we wanted to be footballers, when all they wanted to hear from us were that we wanted to be doctors, lawyers, engineers and accountants?”

Those were the realities of our time.

He asked me about Victor Osimhen and I told him Osimhen did not come for the game. Then he went, “What of that Yoruba boy?” I knew he meant Ademola Lookman, and I pointed Lookman out to him. I also pointed out Victor Boniface and Samuel Chukwueze to him.

“You know it’s your job so you’re the one that will know them. We only hear their names and see them on TV for their clubs. It is difficult for me to recognise some of them here.”

The content creators and all the frenzy

Ace Photographer, Victor Modo and I

Etiene asked about the number of people hovering around the pitch, a lot of them holding camera stands and lights. I told him simply that they were content creators.

“What content are they creating?”

I explained that the job has moved away from what the main Stream media like us do, by just reporting the game. There is now Instagram and Tiktok and a lot of the younger generation may not find joy in knowing who scores a goal or gets a red card for the Super Eagles but may be more interested in the lifestyles of the players. These content creators are cashing in big time. We are old!

Selling tickets and throwing the gates open

Sam Areo, Pooja, and I

So I saw a ticket vendor advertising tickets at the stadium. I simply asked him what was the point of selling tickets when they would still throw the gates open (allowing fans to come in for free).

And he told me that it would not be the case this time, as they were going to sell tickets and allow only paying ticket holders to come into the stadium. Did I believe him? I certainly did not.

Tomorrow, we feast on Libya.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *