King’s College Seeks Education, Sports Ministries Synergy to Identify Talents

Uchechukwu Nnaike

The Principal of King’s College Lagos, Mr. Andrew Ali Agada, has appealed to the Federal Ministry of Education to find ways of synergising with its sports counterpart in harnessing and developing talents discovered at the end of every sporting competition of the various schools.

Speaking during the school’s 103rd inter-house sports competition, he described the discovery and development of fresh talents in sports as a sure way of ensuring that the country is positioned on a higher pedestal in various games on the global stage.

He announced that this year’s event was special because it provided an opportunity to honour one of the distinguished old boys, Alhaji Femi Okunu (SAN), who turned 90 on February 19, for his contributions to the development of the college and the nation.

“Not everybody will go to university, not everyone will earn a living from being a doctor, an engineer or any other career, but from sports, they can make it. We have seen people reach their peak through sports, like the person we are celebrating today, Alhaji Okunu. He is an international sportsman. He played cricket for Nigeria, and he was also a sprinter,” he said.

Agada noted that aside from financial gains, sports also promote teamwork because when the students work together, they synergise and move forward, just as it assists them in time management, as most of the events are timed.

He said sports have always played a critical role in academics, making students mentally alert, helping them cooperate, building their self-confidence and esteem and improving leadership skills.

On his expectations from students as they proceed to a short break for the general election, he said, “As they go home, they need to know where to move to, when not to go out. Luckily enough, we had just had our general PTA meeting last week, where we also addressed the parents of the need to watch the children.”

He also appealed to stakeholders to do more in partnering with the institution, especially in the area of funding, to provide further an enabling environment for academic and sporting activities to thrive.

Also speaking, a former Minister of National Planning and Transportation, Kalu Idika Kalu, lauded the college and the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) for the uniqueness of the games.

Kalu, also a former Minister of Finance and an old boy of the college, said he felt excited and impressed about the various college developments and the sporting event organisation.

On the upcoming elections, Idika said that he studied at King’s College and saw everyone as a brother irrespective of the cultural, religious or ethnic divide.

He urged citizens to focus on persons they perceived could do the job credibly, regardless of regional, religious or other considerations.

The Chairman of the PTA, Mr Sunday Ameh, said the association would not rest on its oars in promoting healthy rivalry and providing an enabling environment for teaching and learning to thrive.

According to him, the students’ interest remains the association’s priority, and it will stop at nothing to ensure all-round success in their development.

“I will say that today’s sporting competition has been very amazing and we are very happy to be part of it. In organising this competition, we ensured that everything is in place. We will not want to be caught unawares in whatever form. As you can see, we had everything that mattered for the success of this game ready, including medics and ambulance,” he explained.