by Funke Egbemode

Why for instance have we not decorated, Felix Anyansi Agwu for all he has done for Enyimba? Do we have to wait until he dies to place emotional adverts in the newspapers  and tell the whole world he died ‘ when his service was most needed’?

Did you know that Nigeria has dropped in ranking as the happiest people on earth? They said we are now the fifth. How sad and saddening. Exactly, that I’m sure is what those ‘people’ wanted to achieve- make us sad. It’s okay for us to drop in other areas but to lose our place as happy-go-lucky- partying folks is something I can’t accept. Or can you?  Go on, tell me I’m in denial. Our happiness is one big deal here.

It is the one solid thing holding us together. Like being able to take our aso ebi to the tailor after a communal conflict. Like holding a huge naming ceremony party for a 25-year-old new wife of an 85-year-old man even when we are sure the old man could no longer get ‘it’ up. We still dance all night anyway, after all there is a new addition to the family. We celebrate everything.

We broadcast jokes in the middle of a flood with crocodiles snipping at our feet and snakes lounging on our sofa. That is who we are, a happy people determined to be happy in the face of all odds.

So, since I read that report which I happily noticed that my fellow happy compatriots happily ignored and went on being happy, I made a mental note to do something happy regularly. Yes, celebrate my countrymen. I admit, so many things are wrong here but there are also a lot of things that are worth celebrating. I had wanted to start with Nollywood, a sector of our economy, the only sector of our economy in fact, that that has grown steadily and creates employment every day.  Just start believing it but Nollywood’s prosperity is not a matter for today. Today is for sport, specifically football and a certain football personality.

I love watching football matches. But I can’t watch it alone. When my boys are home, I even remind them of when the next match is showing. I guess that could be because I grew up watching football with my father. In those days of Rangers and IICC Shooting Stars. I screamed with my father when Best Ogedengbe  stretched his lithe body to catch a ball. And I found Emmanuel Okala’s  endless legs unbelievable. He was just a terror at the goal post. Sam Ojebode, Christian Chukwu, Muda Lawal, Aloysius Atuegbu and others I can’t remember now. Of course, every time I see Segun Odegbami these days, I  try to relate his legs now to the way he seemed to  move two legs at the same time without falling and scoring goals like there was no goalkeeper at the opponents’  posts.

Those were in the days of my father’s black and white television, the one with four legs and doors which I opened with scissors when he wasn’t around. These are the days of the European teams and LED television sets and their super colours. These are the days we watch, celebrate and idolise men we do not know and may never meet. These are the days we spend hard-earned money to do things that help developed economies and rich boys and men. These are sad days. Maybe that’s how we dropped in rank as a happy people.

For instance, José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix, simply known as José Mourinho is a Portuguese football manager and former football player, who is the current manager of Chelsea. He has done so much, so well for Chelsea  he has become a football deity. He is widely regarded by players, fan and coaches to be one of the world’s best managers. Bayern Munich manager Pep Guardiola once described Mourinho as “probably the best coach in the world”. Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard has stated that Mourinho is the best manager he has ever worked for. I concur. The guy deserved all the accolades and some more.

Our children know all the foreign players and club managers and what they earn. I know a governor or two who drop everything to watch Chelsea, Manchester United matches. I know a senator who stays up at night to watch Chelsea too. And do you know President Goodluck Jonathan’s club?

But why do our kids know every footballer in Europe and know none at home? Why are we not encouraging and honouring home based managers and coaches? Why for instance have we not decorated, Felix Anyansi Agwu for all he has done for Enyimba? Do we have to wait until he dies to place emotional adverts in the newspapers  and tell the whole world he died ‘ when his service was most needed’? Here’s one man who has done well. In a country where football meant Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester United or City, Real Madrid and all such foreign names and locations, here’s one man who has consistently done our local league proud. In a country where people have branded their car seat belts with and wear jerseys of football clubs they are never likely to see except on television sets of viewing centres, Anyansi is our special one.

In 2002, Anyansi led Enyimba to win the 2002 professional football league. The same year he led Enyimba to win the Nigerian Super Cup. In 2003, under his watch, Enyimba won the professional football league the third time in a stretch. And that same year, after 39 years of trial and error, the club became the first Nigerian club side to win the CAF Championship League and also the CAF Super Cup in 2004. Since then no other club from Nigeria has won that trophy. In 2004 he led Enyimba to another first, this time not just in Nigeria, but in Africa as the People’s Elephant became the first club side in Africa to win the rechristened CAF Champions League back-to-back (2003 and 2004). The following year, 2005, they also retained the CAF Super Cup.

That same 2005, the L. G electronic group introduced the L.G Cup and it was like every contestable trophy in the land was made for the People’s Elephant as they once more emerged champions. They followed it up with the 2005, Globacom Premier League and the 2005 Coca Cola FA Cup. In other words, Felix Anyansi Agwu in 2005 had virtually every contestable trophy in Nigeria in particular and Africa in general displayed on his office table as the Executive Chairman of Enyimba Football Club International.

Just look at the roll call; the 2004 CAF Championship League Cup, the 2005 CAF Super Cup, the 2005 L.G Cup, the 2005 Coca Cola FA Cup and finally, the 2005 Nigerian Super Cup. It’s a record unequalled till date both in Nigeria and in Africa.
If a man has led Enyimba Int’l F.C to win the State Challenge cup six consecutive times, took the club to the Semi Finals of the CAF Champions League 2008 and then the club won the 2010/2011 Premier League shouldn’t we be idolising him? He was there when Enyimba won the Presidential Inauguration Cup in 2011and reached the Semi Finals of the CAF Champions League in 2011. Leader of Delegation he was for AFCON 2013 before we won the Nigerian Federation Cup for the 3rd term in 2013.
But thus far, this prophet has been celebrated only offshore. He has been decorated Best African Football Manager of the year 2004 by CAF; Best African Football Manager of the year 2005-CAF (the first and only Nigerian Football Administrator to win the CAF award twice. He was also named Best Nigerian Football Administrator 2010-AIT/MTN.

But at home? Nothing, zero, zilch. Seems we are all looking down our imported noses at him while we make our children think Arsene Wenger and Abramovic are guys who live down the road.

Seriously? We owe Felix Anyasi Agwu a couple of dozens of awards and this year is when we should start dealing with that backlog and a  National Honour is a good place to start.

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Read this article in the Sun Newspapers

 

Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija.