The 35 Paralympics contingent from Anambra State billed to
participate in this year’s National Sports Festival in Lagos tagged
Eko 2012 yesterday in Awka protested over their poor camping allowance
by the state government.
The bone of contention according to one of their coaches, Mr Boniface
Akunna was mainly against the amount of money to be paid them by the
State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development as daily
allowance while the sports fiesta lasts.
The placard carrying Paralympians in their numbers invaded the
premises of the Women Development Centre Awka office of the state’s
Commissioner for Women Affairs, demanded that they be paid the sum of
three thousand five hundred naira (N3500) as against the two thousand
naira N(2000) offered them by the officials of the Ministry.
Some of the Paralympics, including one of their coaches, Akunna
expressed regret that less than twenty-four hours to the commencement
of the Sports Festival, they were still in Awka haggling with the
Ministry over game allowances, while their able body counterpart from
the State had already settled down in their camp in Lagos for the
event.
Addressing the journalists in turns, they argued that they wanted any
amount agreed upon with officials of the ministry to be paid them in
full instead of the part payment pattern proposed by the Ministry to
avoid being robbed of it thereafter, as was the case in the past.
However, the State’s Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social
Development, Mrs. Henrietta Agbata after a closed-door meeting with
them said the issues had been resolved but insisted that the Ministry
would not pay the Paralympics more than two thousand naira as
allowance.
The contingent would feature in track and field events, Power-Lifting
and Table Tennis only.
