Who Is NIGERIA’s Sports Minister?

• Why Many Still Don’t Know Him

Several months ago, President Tinubu appointed new ministers. Many of them have hit the ground running and already making great strides in their various ministries.

They are in the news every blessed day talking tough. But some others are not doing very well and are barely heard of. One of them is the Minister of Sports. He is barely heard of as well. Let’s tell you his name. He is Senator John Enoh. Does that name sound familiar? We doubt most Nigerians would have heard of the name or his present position.

Last year, during the appointment of ministers, President Bola Tinubu appointed the Cross River State-born politician, Senator John Enoh, as the Minister of Sports Development. Many didn’t see that coming. But that’s the president for you. Some said he had nothing to offer in Sports and should not have been appointed.

City People recalls that the Federal Government had separated the Ministry of Sports Development from Youth, unlike what it was under previous administrations. A former member of the House of Representatives, Abubakar Momoh, who is from Edo State, is now the head of the new Ministry of Youth.

During that time, top stakeholders in the Sports sector expressed their disappointment over the appointment of Senator Enoh, as the Minister of Sports Development.

Ace sports broadcaster Frank Ilaboya said he is a little bit surprised because he doesn’t think he will be able to prove so many people who don’t know him wrong. “I want to believe that the immediate past sports minister Sunday Dare has set the template, even though there were also colossal mistakes, so I hope the new man should look at that especially now that sports have been separated from the youth ministry.

“Now he can focus squarely on sports development, so much is required. We are all witnesses to what the Moroccans are doing with sports, with massive investments in facilities and human capital development,” he said.

According to Ilaboya, Enoh has a huge task ahead of him in reviving the ailing sports sector. “I think the minister has a lot ahead of him because sports is the only area that gives Nigerians joy, the only one that speaks one language.

“He needs to do something different, we are tired of the same old stories and moving in circles, so let him come up with some creativity that can distinguish him, especially now that many people don’t seem to know him. But I wish him well, and pray he gets the right people around him, who will tell him the truth and the path to follow, which is very important. He has to hit the ground running, there’s no time,” he expressed.

But the new minister came under scathing criticisms online, with some saying his appointment was a pointer that President Tinubu wasn’t interested in the sports sector.

Veteran sports journalist and administrator, Godwin Enakhena, flashed checks on the new sports minister, who succeeds Sunday Dare.”Who is John Enoh? Minister of Sports,” Enakhena wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

An enthusiast, Ayodeji Adegbenro said, “I hypothesise that once they finish allocating all the ministries to the appointees, the last man standing gets sports.”

“Senator John Enoh is the new sports minister. I checked his CV and I took a walk. Sports is undervalued,” Seyi Alao said.

“I have never heard of the name before but it’s obvious that Tinubu has no interest in sport,” Godwin Aluge added.

“I pity sports in Nigeria. No track record in sports whatsoever. Are we in for a surprise? We are watching,” a user named Bamgbola said.

@02smyles; I pity sports in Nigeria. No track record in sports whatsoever. Abi are we in for a surprise? We are watching.

@Eseksmills; John Owan Enoh, a former Senator from Cross River State…. Elder brother to former Vice Chancellor of Unicross, Prof Anthony Owan Enoh. Yes, I know him, but Minister of Sports huh!! I don’t think he’s capable of achieving anything there.

@IamRoyalEagle; One of the square pegs in round holes. I am sorry for our Sports Journalists.

However, former Chairman of the Gombe State FA Shuaib Gara-Gombe also admitted he knew nothing about the new minister but hoped he proved doubters wrong.

“Honestly speaking I don’t know anything about him or where he comes from until after I saw the news of his appointment,” the Punch reports

“I don’t want to say anything much now but I want to tell you clearly that there were times when we had sports people as ministers and they turned out to be the worst sports ministers we ever had. We keep lamenting that they are giving us people who don’t have sports backgrounds but we once had Sani Ndanusa, what did he do? He ended up becoming one of the worst Sports Ministers.

“My only advice is that we revive the National Sports Commission and allow the minister to focus on policy, while the commission takes care of sports, but we never can tell because he may turn out to surprise us,” he said.

In the same vein, former President of the Badminton Federation of Nigeria, Niran Adeniji, said it didn’t matter if the new minister didn’t have a sports background.

“Good if he has a sports background but it is not mandatory that he should. When you get a political appointment, you only need to be a good manager because you have all the necessary expertise in the ministry and if you work with them closely, you will do well. The only area I think you need professionals is being an Attorney General or in health,” Adeniji said.

Former Ogun State Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Bukola Olopade, said he was looking forward to a good working relationship with the Senator.

“I trust the judgment of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and I’m very sure that the new minister will do his best and continue from the positive legacies that Sunday Dare left behind.

“From his credentials, you will see that he is a tested personality who understands cooperate governance. I’m looking forward to a great working relationship with him, most especially as Ogun State prepares to host the next National Sports Festival, which I’m the Chairman of the Local Organising Committee,” Olopade said.

However, here are a few things to know about the newly appointed Sports Minister.

Enoh was born in 1966, in the Agbokim Waterfall Community of Cross River State and is married to Rachel Owan-Enoh with children.

Enoh served as a Senator representing the Central Senatorial District of Cross River State in the 8th Assembly of the Senate.

He was a member of the People’s Democratic Party until May 2017 when he switched to the ruling All Progressives Congress. In 2019, he contested the governorship election in Cross River State under the APC but was unsuccessful.

Enoh holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Sociology from the University of Calabar. He graduated as the top student in 1988 with Second Class Honours, ‘Upper Division.’

He taught at the University of Calabar for seven years from 1991 to 1997 and entered politics in 1997 during General Sani Abacha’s political transition programme and successfully ran for the Etung State Constituency seat in the Cross River State House of Assembly, where he served as minority leader. He later became chairman of the Committee of Information. He then represented the Obubra/Etung Federal constituency in the National Assembly for 12 years from 2003 to 2015, holding various positions.

In 2015, he was elected to the Senate and served as Chairman of the Committee of Finance. Enoh was also the APC’s candidate for the governorship in 2019.

In addition to his political career, Enoh owns several farms where he engages in arable and livestock production.

In addition to his political endeavours, Enoh is actively involved in philanthropy. He established the JOE (John Owan Enoh) Foundation, which focuses on assisting individuals living with diabetes in Nigeria.

–Benprince Ezeh

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