Public flogging

Public flogging

By Clem Oluwole

Part of activities marking the 15th Independence Anniversary in Jos was a friendly soccer match arranged by the Benue-Plateau Football Association (BPFA) between Octopus FC, Jos and Plateau Dynamos also of Jos.

The highlight of the match was not the end result but the flogging of a soldier in plain attire, before the Guest of Honour and Military Governor of the state, Col. Mohammed Abdullahi. And I doff my cap for the superior officer who passed that sentence on the indisciplined soldier.

Before I go further on the flogging episode, I will like to award full marks to the Dynamos FC for honouring the last minute invitation by the BPFA to face the Octopus in spite of the strained relationship which followed the association’s decision to award the 1975 Challenge Cup semi-final match to the Octopus in April.

For the benefit of my readers, the semi-final duel had ended in a free-for-all fight and the combat left three Dynamos players including Baba Asabe who triggered off the combat, severely injured. One of them, star player Layiwola Olagbemiro was pounded to a state of unconsciousness by some of the soldiers who were assigned to maintain law and order.

The BPFA later met and awarded the match to the Octopus who were leading by a lone goal before the confusion broke out. That decision was, however, dismissed by the National Football Association following Dynamos’ petition. A replay that followed on a neutral ground saw the Octopus through to the semi-final of the state’s series by a 2 – 1 win. 

I commend the association for its ability to bring the two clubs together again and I hope there will be no recurrence.

Now back to our soldier man.

Of recent, army-civilian sporting engagements have come under severe criticism. A suggestion has been repeatedly made that games between the two factions be discontinued.

But how?

The two factions are inseparable. Soldiers are made because of civilians. More so is the appointment of civilians into what should be a total military leadership since 1966.

Arguably, what causes brawl among soldiers and civilians during games especially in soccer is that the former are usually preoccupied with victory. Therefore, when the going is against them, they resort to jungle game assisted by their comrades who are supposed to be spectators. What they fail to realize is that sport is designed to foster friendship and not to fuel hooliganism.

The plain clothed soldier rightly disgraced in the presence of more than 30,000 spectators at the Jos Township Stadium was so because he was not in his uniform. Were he in his khaki, he would not have been so publicly disgraced by his fellow soldiers. Instead, he would have been locked up in the guardroom which he is probably used to.

Army authorities should ensure that whenever army clubs take on their civilian counterparts, security measures should, as usual, be the sole responsibility of our policemen. I am not here to condemn our soldiers but to be able to deal with the bad eggs, those of them wishing to watch matches should be ordered to turn up in plain attires.

Probably this latest measure of public flogging introduced by the army would help to keep military hooliganism off our sports.

Before Brigadier Murtala’s regime came into existence on July 29, the word axe was generally understood to be an implement for felling trees or hewing woods. Now things have changed.

When eventually the axe fell on the National Sports Commission (NSC) a couple of weeks ago, it hewed no less than 34 big and small deadwoods or should I say ‘live-woods’? Among them were the Secretary, Mr. Abraham Ordia, and the Director of Sports, Jerry Enyeazu.

Since then, the NSC has been carrying advertisements in the dailies inviting applications for the post of director of sports. The question here is: What is the NSC doing about the post of secretary? Surely we need a secretary whose sterling qualities surpass those of Ordia to make the commission what we want it to be… a no-nonsense power house of sports.

Culled from Saturday Commentary (October 4, 1975).