Professor Abdulfatahi Olokoba is the Chief Medical Director, General Hospital Ilorin and also the second vice Chairman of Kwara State Badminton Association. In this interview with MIKE ADEYEMI, he speaks on the medical effect of engaging in sports as well as the urgent need for Kwara State Government to prioritize sports to curb restiveness in the state. Excerpts:
What area of sports do you engage in?
Yes, I engage in sporting activities like cycling and badminton. But the one I engaged more frequently in badminton.
I have been involved in badminton for more than 15 years. In fact, I’m the second vice chairman of Kwara State Badminton Association.
So, I’m deeply involved in the management of badminton in Kwara State.
Why the choice of Badminton?
Badminton is a sport I came in contact with when I was young. And since then, the passion has been there. Ditto cycling.
Even at this my age, I have bicycles and I like cycling with my kids. In fact, people labelled us a cycling family.
As a doctor, how do you find time for sports?
Everybody should engage in one sporting activity or the other. It’s for the sake of our wellbeing.
Sports is not a luxury, it is a matter of necessity to engage in sports. As you are growing older, from the time we are born – the age of maximal development is around 21 years.
Beyond that age, the body organs starts declining gradually such that by the time you reach 40- 45 years, they have reached a critical decline and we start to notice it within us.
Now, if you engage in sporting activities, you tend to slow down that which decline and you maintain your wellbeing.
And certain chronic medical conditions that are about to set in at middle age will delay the onset, and even when they occur, you delay the projections such as hypertension, Diabetes mellitus, musculatures issues such as joint even the functioning of the brains.
You tend to delay the onset of these middle age diseases. So that is the main benefits of sports.
In addition, sports also help you to manage stress. Stress issues in your personal life , in the office and all around you. So sports has a lot of benefits.
If you see someone of my age now who doesn’t involve in sports, we cannot be the same. I’m heathier than my peers who are not into sports.
Are you saying your active participation in sports has not affected your profession?
No. It doesn’t. If anything at all, it is a complementary. My engagement in sporting activities has enabled me to maintain my wellbeing, my physical wellbeing as well as my mental wellbeing.
And because I am physically fit, I’m also medically well. In fact, engaging in sporting activities will enable you to perform well as a doctor.
How would you rate the development of Kwara Badminton?
If you are talking about the development of badminton specifically in Kwara State and in Nigeria, Kwara is on top.
The reason being that Kwara State has nurtured players who have represented Nigeria and Africa in badminton.
Players likes of Ola, Susan, Fatimoh and Zainab. Sofiat is currently on her way to the All African Games. They were all groomed in Kwara.
So, the tradition is that Kwara State has successfully nurtured home grown talents . Kwara State is not just the home of sports, but the state has contributed to the development of the game.
Our current badminton board led by Honorable Warah is are doing well. What we did recently was to engage in fund raising such that we had to tax ourselves to make it known that we are not there for what we ‘ll gain, but to make personal sacrifice.
We have staged two weeks coaching clinic which was meant to discover raw talents. The event was for the u-15.
So these are some of the badminton programmes in the state. Personally I have sponsored junior badminton championship in the state where talents were tapped.
In fact, it was in such tourney Sofiat was discovered. She has not only represented Kwara, but Nigeria. So that is how much we have gone in terms of contribution.
How do you think the Kwara State Government can promote badminton in the state?
One thing that can be done first is that the Kwara State government should prioritise sports.
Two, the government should also look at the area of infrastructure. If you look at the Indoor Sports Hall of Kwara Stadium, it’s a multi sports hall which has been in used for virtually all games.
The Indoor Hall is in deplorable state. As a medical student in 1992, I participated in the Nigerian Medical Games in that indoor, and I won medals in handball for University of Ilorin.
Then, within that indoor was a lightening system, air-conditioning system. It was superb. But now it is a far cry. So the new Kwara State government should revive the lost glory not only the Indoor Hall, but the entire Kwara State Stadium.
If sports is priortized, it will curb youths restiveness and criminality in the state. Now, sports is no more a recreational activity, but big business.
So, if the Kwara State Government can do this, it will have lot of multiplier effect in the state.
