𝗢𝗡𝗗𝗢: 𝗡𝗗𝗗𝗖'𝘀 𝗡𝗶𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝘁𝗮 𝗦𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘀 𝗙𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗮𝗹 2027: 𝗘𝘀𝗲-𝗢𝗱𝗼 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗹𝘀 𝗠𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗿𝗻𝘀 𝗠𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗿𝗼𝗼𝘁𝘀 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻

By NigerDelta Voice,

Niger Delta, Nigeria.

The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) has come under scrutiny over the apparent exclusion of secondary schools in Ese-Odo Local Government Area of Ondo State from a circulated list of schools expected to participate in the proposed 2027 Niger Delta Sports Festival.

The concern follows the emergence of a list containing 12 secondary schools in Ondo State, with Ilaje High School, Igbokoda, appearing to be the only school from the wider riverine Ilaje/Ese-Odo axis.

The schools listed are Oyemekun Grammar School, Akure; Federal Girls Grammar School, Akure; Homaj School, Ondo; Unity Secondary School, Akure; St. Helen's, Ondo; Aquinas' Secondary School, Akure; Ilaje High School, Igbokoda; Ondo Boys High School; FUTA Secondary School, Akure; Stella Maris, Okitipupa; Fiwasaye Girls Grammar School, Akure; and Police Secondary School, Akure.

The apparent geographical imbalance has generated questions over the inclusiveness of the NDDC's grassroots sports development programme, particularly as no secondary school from Ese-Odo is listed.

The development is raising concerns among stakeholders who believe that young sporting talents in the riverine communities should receive the same opportunity to participate, compete and be discovered.

NDDC's Grassroots Sports Mandate

The concern is significant because the NDDC has repeatedly presented the Niger Delta Games as a platform for talent discovery, youth empowerment, community development and regional integration.

At the 2026 edition, NDDC Managing Director, Dr. Samuel Ogbuku, said the Games were designed to identify and develop home-grown sporting talents rather than relying on athletes recruited from outside the region.

The official Niger Delta Games platform also identifies local-government trials as an important stage of the competition, with emphasis on discovering raw talents at the grassroots.

Against this background, stakeholders are questioning how young athletes from remote riverine communities can benefit fully from a programme whose school participation appears, from the circulated list, to be concentrated largely around urban centres.

Ese-Odo Schools Left Out?

Ese-Odo Local Government Area has a significant population of young people and a number of public secondary schools from which sporting talents could potentially be identified.

Available education statistics have previously identified 13 public secondary schools in Ese-Odo, indicating that the area has an established secondary-school network capable of supporting grassroots talent identification.

Communities including Ajapa, Adoloseimo, Arogbo, Igbobini, Sabomi, Igbekebo, Kiribo, Biagbini and others have young people who could benefit from structured sporting competitions and talent-development programmes.

The apparent absence of Ese-Odo schools has therefore prompted a straightforward question:

If the primary objective of the Niger Delta Games is grassroots talent discovery, why are schools from Ese-Odo not represented on the circulated list?

Concerns Over Urban-Centred Selection

While the NDDC deserves commendation for establishing a regional sporting platform capable of discovering athletes who could progress to national and international competitions, stakeholders say the success of the initiative should also be measured by its reach into remote communities.

They argue that concentrating opportunities around major urban centres could unintentionally disadvantage young athletes in riverine communities, where transportation difficulties, inadequate sporting facilities and limited access to information already constitute barriers to participation.

The concern is not that every school in Ondo State must automatically be included, but that the selection process should be based on transparent and objective criteria that provide opportunities for talented youths across the state.

NDDC Urged To Review Selection Process

The Commission is being urged to clarify whether the circulated 12-school list represents the final selection or merely a preliminary arrangement ahead of the 2027 festival.

Stakeholders also want the NDDC to disclose the criteria used in selecting the schools and explain whether secondary schools in Ese-Odo were contacted, invited or considered during the preliminary process.

Other questions include whether students from Ese-Odo participated in any preliminary screening or trials, whether additional schools could still be included before registration begins, and whether athletes from communities not represented by the selected schools would have alternative routes into the competition.

There are also calls for the NDDC and the festival organisers to consider local-government-level scouting and zonal trials across Ondo State to ensure that geographical location does not prevent talented athletes from being discovered.

Beyond Akure

The issue has also renewed calls for the NDDC to take its sports development initiatives beyond state capitals and easily accessible urban communities.

For many riverine communities, sports remain one of the few areas where young people can demonstrate talent and potentially secure educational, professional and international opportunities.

Stakeholders therefore argue that the Niger Delta Sports Festival should deliberately target such communities rather than leaving talent identification primarily to areas with better infrastructure and accessibility.

If transportation remains a challenge, organisers could establish zonal trials. Where sporting facilities are inadequate, community fields and school grounds could be utilised, while qualified coaches and talent scouts could be deployed to underserved areas.

A Call For Equal Opportunity

The controversy comes at a time when the NDDC is seeking to expand the Niger Delta Games as a major regional sporting initiative.

The 2026 edition reportedly attracted more than 3,000 athletes from the nine Niger Delta states, demonstrating the growing scale and popularity of the programme.

The NDDC has also projected the Games as a pathway for discovering athletes capable of representing Nigeria at major national and international competitions.

However, critics insist that such ambitions can only be achieved if the talent-discovery process is sufficiently broad and inclusive.

They argue that the Niger Delta's sporting potential does not exist only in its major cities. It also exists in the creeks, riverine settlements and rural communities where young athletes often lack access to organised competitions.

NDDC Must Address The Concerns

NigerDelta Voice understands that the circulated list may not necessarily constitute the final official selection for the 2027 Niger Delta Sports Festival.

However, the apparent omission of Ese-Odo from the list provides an opportunity for the NDDC to clarify the situation and reassure communities that the programme will be implemented transparently and inclusively.

The Commission is therefore urged to review the representation of riverine communities and ensure that talented youths in Ese-Odo are not inadvertently left behind.

Ese-Odo has schools. Ese-Odo has youths. Ese-Odo has sporting talents.

What the communities are demanding is not preferential treatment, but equal opportunity to participate and be discovered.

For a sports festival established in the name of the Niger Delta, stakeholders say the competition must reach beyond the cities and into the communities that make up the region.

The creeks should not merely hear about the Games; the creeks should have athletes on the field.

NigerDelta Voice
The Creeks Speaks, The World Listens