As youth restiveness and unemployment continue to ravage the Niger Delta, Gospel Obolo, a sports entrepreneur and the chief executive officer of Renew Empire, a conglomerate of sports and entertainment, said sports is the biggest employer of labour.
He further said that proper recognition of sports entertainment in Nigeria could help solve the country’s unemployment problem.
Obolo made the remark on the sideline of the opening of a sport entertainment complex in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.
He said that the purpose behind the concept of the sport centre is to solve the tourism and the hospitality lapses in the state and to change the ugly narrative of the youths.
“We are changing the idea of hospitality in Rivers State by taking the youth out of the street, as this will provide job opportunity,” he said.
Obolo regretted that the Nigerian government and the states are yet to engage the youth pro-actively but only use them during election and drop them thereafter, thereby creating youth restiveness.
He maintained that Renew Empire Entertainment has assisted a lot of musicians, but stressed that the new concept will manage kick-boxing, boxing for both male and female and wrestling with the aim of competing in the world championship.
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Obolo explained that the sport entertainment will help youths who think their case is hopeless, especially those ravaged by drugs, as this will change their orientation.
He lamented that the tourism industry in Rivers State is at the lowest stage since the Ministry of Culture and Tourism is moribund as the idle youths could be attracted by crime and criminality, promising that he will revive the tourism industry to create job opportunities for the youths.
The sports philosopher said if there was opportunity, he can partner with the Ministry to assist the youth.
Obolo, who is the current president of South-South Kick-Boxing Association, said he has the capacity to bring live sports entertainment to Niger Delta, as he brought a Canadian Kick boxer, Anthony Ford to fight in Nigeria in the past, while appealing to Ministry of Education to include boxing, kick-boxing and other serious sports at both primary and secondary school levels to catch them young.
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