Pulse.ng : Green Beret FC wins, 1 Div. football for peace tournament

By Muhammad Tijjani

The Green Beret Nigerian Army Football Team, on Sunday emerged winners of 1Division Nigerian Army Football for Peace Tournament 2024 after a penalty shootout.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), report that the football tournament began on Friday with four football clubs, which included ,Simoiben Football Club , Kachia United Football Club , Green Beret Football Club and Birnin Gwari United Football Club.

NAN reports that the football tournament was a collaboration between 1 Division Nigerian Army with Simoiben Football Academy Kaduna, with the aim of uniting the youths and communities through sports.

The Green Beret Nigerian Army FC beat Simoiben FC in a penalty shootout 12 to 11 , to win the tournament.

While in third position, Kachia United beat Birnin Gwari United FC also in penalty shootout 4 to 3 respectively .

The General Officer Commanding (GOC), 1 Division Nigerian Army Maj.-Gen. Mayirenso Saraso, said the decision to organize the football tournament for peace and security arose out of his visit to some communities in Kachai and Kajuru LGA of the state where there were security challenges.

He said he went to the communities with the hope of providing some succour, working together with the community leaders, and members on how to address it.

Sraso lamented that even among the communities, they were not living harmoniously.

“Precisely, when I went to Cibiya, I discovered the communities were not living harmoniously.

”They were divided into cibiya one and two in Kajuru LGA. These communities are not having any relationship at all.

“Community members of Cibiya one cannot pass through Cibiya two to access the main road linking Kaduna and Kachai because of some accusations that they were partnering with bandits or criminals in the past,” he said.

He, therefore, said in order to bring peace and security, the army needed to work together harmoniously with the communities to face the same adversaries.

According to Saraso,, teey plan to organise more sporting events in collaboration with the leadership of both communities.

He said that the youths who are the main targets and always the victims, needed to play more roles, hence bring them together through sporting activities.

Saraso said some of the players were from Kajuru, Kachia, and Giwa LGA, who come to join some of their counterparts from the Birnin Gwari axis where there was also a similar security challenge.

He hoped that after the whole engagements and interactions within the three days, the bond and unity would go a long way. to bolster peace.

Apart from such engagement being part of the Nigerian Army’s civil military relations, the GOC said they organise free medical outreaches, donation of either food items or carrying out Infrastructural development in communities that were largely impacted by insecurity.

Going forward, he said that football, being a unifying sport that brings people together in Nigeria, they would exploit it for the essence of peace.

He disclosed that they would continue with the football tournaments, where they would take it to the LGAs next time, instead of bringing it to Kaduna.

The GOC urged the participants to take home the spirit of sportsmanship they exhibited in the tournament, explaining that they don’t need to bother on their differences but interact with each other.

In his remarks, Gov. Uba Sani of Kaduna state, said the tournament was a good idea and fell within the principle of civil military relations.

Sani, represented by the Overseeing Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs , Mr Samuel Aruwan, said he would continue to support sports development.

According to him, security is very important, saying, ”without security, there is no development.”.

He added that security was too important to be left in the hands of the security agencies alone, adding,,”we are all critical stakeholders and we must support their efforts.”

Simon Moses, a Nigerian international footballer and the founder of Simoiben Football Academy Kaduna , said he partnered with the army to contribute his quota to peace.

Moses said, ”As a barrack boy, born and brought up here in the barrack, I felt I should be part of whatever will bring peace and harmony in the state and the country at large.” (NAN)