ALEX OTTI AND THE PURPORTED SPONSORSHIP OF THE OLD AMASATOR FOOTBALL COMPETITION

By Onyebuchi Ememanka

My attention has been drawn to an announcement made this morning on Magic FM Aba to the effect that Mazi Alex Otti is the sponsor of the Old Amasator Football Competition.

This mischievous announcement came as a rude shock and embarrassment to those of us who are indigenes of the Old Amasator Community in Osisioma Ngwa LGA.
Our investigations show that the announcement was masterminded by some fifth columnists who seek to create confusion in our community.

As someone who has been part of the football competition for more than twenty years, I deprecate this attempt to insult the collective integrity of our people.

The Old Amasator Community made up Abayi, Umuocham, Umule, Umuode, Umueze, Umuchichi and Umungasi villages have capable sons and daughters who can and have sponsored our football competitions.

From our Late Traditional Ruler, Eze Amos Nwamaghinna to Elder Dr. Emmanuel Adaelu to HRH, Eze Eze Ukaegbu, our people have always sponsored our annual football competitions and will continue to do so.

We certainly do not need an Alex Otti to sponsor our football competition.
The Old Amasator Community is no platform for emergency sponsors of an event that has been in existence since the early 1990s.

I served as Secretary of the Amasator Football Association for several years in the 90s and I am aware of how we do our things. This is an event that our people are proud of and will continue to identify with.

During this last Christmas, I was invited to kick off one of the matches as a full time supporter of the competition. I had fruitful talks with the current officials of the Association and at no time did the name of Alex Otti come up during the discussion.
It is therefore intriguing that the name of Alex Otti will spring up on the day the finals of the competition will be played.

It is the height of misguided political calculation for anyone to use an event that brings our people together annually to play cheap and infantile politics.

If Alex Otti seeks to sponsor football competitions in communities, he should first start from his home, Atani Arochukwu and then move to his adopted home, Umuehim Nvosi.
We are not aware that he has sponsored any football competitions anywhere. Why would he suddenly choose our community to sponsor our competitions?

We will resist any cheap attempt to rope our people into this kind of nonsense and desecrate our collective sense of oneness as a people.

Nonsense!    

Ememanka wrote from Osisioma,Abia                                            
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