During its Tuesday plenary session, the Senate vehemently denounced Libya for its hostility toward the Super Eagles, the nation’s football team, who were in the country for their team’s Africa Cup of Nations qualifying second leg.
This is in response to a motion made under personal explanation by Senator Sulaiman Kawu (Kano South), the chairman of the Senate Committee on Sports, regarding the mistreatment of the Super Eagles in Libya.
According to Senator Kawu, the delegation’s other members were also put in danger by the actions of the football federation and Libyan authorities, in addition to the players’ lives.
He explained that the actions of the Libyans were planned with the intention of frustrating and depressing the Nigerian team, who are on a national assignment.
Along with the players, other members of the delegation, including the deputy governor of Edo State, officials from the Nigeria Football Federation, a few lawmakers, and staff members of the Nigerian parliament, were also put in danger by the actions of the Libyan authorities and football federation.
“The Nigerian embassy in Tripoli arranged with the Benghazi authorities to receive the Nigerian delegation prior to their arrival. However, their application was categorically denied, as the Libyan authorities decided to impede our team’s progress before the scheduled game,” Senator Kawu stated.
The senator from Kano South pleaded with the Senate to take up his proposal and denounce the Libyan authorities’ mistreatment of the Nigerian football team for inciting unjustified hostilities and treating them unfairly.
Additionally, he called on the federal government to use the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to alert the Libyan government to this unappealing development and to use caution because it could have detrimental diplomatic effects.
The Senate’s Deputy President, Senator Barau Jibrin, addressed the assembled group during the plenary and stated that what transpired with the Super Eagles in Libya was not in line with the values of sports.
“To promote unity and competition and enhance brotherhood among the countries on the continent,” he stated, is the essence of sports.
Senator Barau urged the Libyan government to “apologize for what they have done to the Nigerian team,” calling the treatment of the Super Eagles players “terrible.”
The Super Eagles’ nightmare started when the smaller Al Abraq International Airport—which is normally used for hajj operations—was chosen over Benghazi as the destination for their chartered ValueJet aircraft.
Concerns were raised about the team’s safety after they were left stranded at the airport for more than twelve hours.