Plateau crisis -NGO vows to unite citizens through sports 

By Golok Nanmwa, Jos 

To ensure lasting  peace in Plateau State ,a Non governmental organisation  , Citadel Sports Advancement Foundation is organising a basket  ball tournament with a view to uniting citizens of Plateau Northern senatorial zone through sports.

It would be recalled that Plateau North has been crisis ridden for over a decade.

Our Correspondent gathered that the basketball tournament, would  kick-start at the weekend at the Dadi Kowa Youth center and comprised of several  teams from the four local governments in the state in the Northern Senatorial zone .

Speaking to newsmen in Jos, the founder and Chief Executive office  of the NGO Dabis Sunday Christopher ,said  that the tournament  would  help foster peace and unity in the society.

He lamented the crisis that has bedeviled the Plateau  North Senatorial  zone in the past and said the organisation would use sports to bring peace to the zone and Plateau as a whole 

“As an NGO in Plateau State, we would continue  to promote peaceful coexistence among the youths.”

Dabis said “Citadel Sport is a nonprofit organization in Jos  with the intent to use sports as a platform to impart life skills to the Nigerian youth and to provide them with talent-building opportunities while teaching them the fundamentals of different sports. ”

“Our activities are focused and formed to teach players accountability, respect, teamwork, and the benefit of hard work, this project is aimed at promoting peace, reconciliation and empowering Nigerian youths through active engagement in sporting activities. ”

“As a group we are using sports to douse tension in restive areas and demilitarized the youths and help them engage in productive ventures and to  disabuse their minds from social vices that hinder human resource development. ”

“We  also seek to promote social integration, Community capacity building, crime reduction, security consciousness, Health and lifestyles amongst the youth population via a sensitization on issues such as drug abuse, HIV/AIDS, violence and gender inequality during the sport tournaments. ”

 He also said the  mega basketball tournament which would hold in  December, from 11-16 December will assemble a minimum of 7000 youths from various parts of Plateau State.

We shall also give leaders and other stakeholders from the state the opportunity to address the youths based on current realities and concerns. 

“The competition is organised to bring youths from all backgrounds to tell the entire nation that we are peace ambassadors, that we put our differences aside and celebrate peace,”Dabis further added. 

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Plateau crisis -NGO vows to unite  citizens through sports