Interview With The Chairman Of Mark Mentors Basketball Club At The Super 8 Basketball League

November, 13 2021.

Interviewer: Let’s meet you sir?

Mark: My name is Igoche Mark, I’m the Chairman of Mark Mentors Basketball club.

Interviewer: What’s your reaction to the Super 8?

Mark: Let me start by thanking the Minister and the entire Ministry of Youth and Sports and also by extension the Federal Government for this laudable event. The Final 8 happening here is a very good thing. This is what we want, we want the game to develop, we want the game to happen. People are here, we have 8 teams from both Atlantic and savannah conference, they are both gathered here to play. They traveled from far and near to come here to play. Even economic wise alone, people have benefited from here alone, people selling food outside, people doing transport, people who have come here to play, it’s so much. So, this is what we want and for me, it’s a welcome development. I’m happy about this and I also want to encourage the Minister not to relent, not to stop, let him try to find a lasting solution to this problem in basketball. There are so many kids who are here now, ordinarily they could be on the street doing one thing or the other but they are here today because this is going on. In doing this , we are even reducing the insecurity in the country. So, this is something that is welcomed and it should continue.

Interviewer: Talking about the crisis at the NBBF, recently we came across a letter from FIBA, threatening Nigerians that if election is not done at the end of this month and everything handed over to Kida led NBBF, we are going to be ban. What will you say about that?

Mark: I think FIBA shouldn’t be about one person, FIBA shouldn’t be an individual thing because the game of basketball is bigger than anybody and if FIBA wants to ban us, they can go ahead. They cannot push us to do what shouldn’t be done. The Minister has intervened in the crisis, the Minister has said okay, hold on, the Minister has set up a committee to resolve and each parties to look into this crisis and then FIBA from nowhere will come and say, threatening ban, No. FIBA should be interested in the game, FIBA’s interest alone shouldn’t be about leadership, FIBA’s interest shouldn’t be about who becomes the president of NBBF, I think that’s so wrong. So, if they want to ban, they can go ahead and ban us. Let’s stay and develop the game here and that’s the most important thing for me.