FORMER ministers of sports have been accused of being the major actors in the dwindling fortune of the country’s sports in general and football in particular.

A member of the House of Representatives Committee on Sports, Hon. Abdul Ningi said this at the first day of a three-day Stakeholders Forum in Abuja on the dismal performance of the Super Eagles at the just-concluded World Cup.

Ningi spoke after the presentations of former ministers of sports and that of FIFA and CAF Executive member, Dr. Amos Adamu and former Chairman of the Nigeria Football Association (NFA), Alhaji Ibrahim Galadima.

“The presentations by Dr. Amos Adamu and the past ministers of sports have proved that the elite have failed the country. They are the administrators and yet they have nothing to tell us about the dwindling fortunes of our football in particular and sports in general,” he said.

He queried Dr. Adamu on how many younger officers he sent on courses in preparations to have those that would take over from them on retirement or was that not possible because of the attitude of self centeredness that has blind folded the administrators.

Ningi argued that the budgetary allocation of every ministry and parastatals include funds for such training adding, “if such trainings did not and is still not taking place, the money should be accounted for so that Nigerians will know what is happening.”

He noted that the first match against Argentina at the World Cup was a prove that the Swede, Lars Lagerback made a great input in the team, but maintained that the subsequent matches exposed the Super Eagles as mere pretenders and not competitors.

The lawmaker insists that the problem of our football lies on the selfishness of administrators saying "we have found from your presentations that major part of our problems is that people are simply too personal and not lovers of the game.”