The Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Sunday received the Premier League trophy, saying his administration will continue to use sports as a means of engagement, social inclusion, and change agent.
The trophy was officially presented to Sanwo-Olu by the Managing Director/CEO of Guinness Nigeria PLC, Girish Sharma, at the Lagos House, Marina.
Speaking during the ceremony, the governor said bringing the Premier League trophy to Lagos showed that “there is something positive about our followership, enthusiasm, and the development of sports in our country, but more importantly in Lagos”.
He said: “We are excited that Guinness identifies with us by bringing the Premier League Trophy to Lagos.
“It is a trophy that everybody believes is inspirational.
“It is about using sports as a change agent.
“It is about using sports as a way of connecting to the youth demographic that we have.
“It is about using sports as a weapon to be able to identify the skills, capacity, and capability of our young people.
“It is about using sports as a strong connection to be socially responsible citizens and individuals and to use it as a means of engagement.”
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Governor Sanwo-Olu, who earlier received Sharma and his team during a courtesy call at Lagos House, Marina, said his administration will continue to make Lagos hospitable and habitable for businesses to thrive.
He said: “We are indeed happy with what the brand (Guinness Nigeria PLC) has done, especially in sports and other socially responsible areas of endeavours.
“We are indeed happy and excited that it is one of those companies and brands that stayed in Lagos and has grown out of Lagos to other parts of the country and other parts of West Africa.
“So we are happy that we continue to make Lagos home to it.
“One of the things that I am going to throw back to you is to see how some of the teams, during their summer break, can come around for two or three days.
“We don’t bite people, we don’t eat people, we are just fans.
“We just want to hug them and take a selfie with them.
“We want the teams to come and see millions of their fans and identify with the country and the State.
“We want to assure you that we will continue to make Lagos hospitable and habitable for businesses to do well and thrive.
“We will continue to make the environment worthwhile for every corporate organisation, because we know that it is by doing that that we can develop the economy, we can grow, and people can see a better life for one another.”
Speaking earlier, Sharma commended Governor Sanwo-Olu and his team for the good things they are doing in Lagos State.
Sharma, who disclosed that Guinness Nigeria is 75 years old, restated his organisation’s commitment to Lagos State.
He said bringing the Premier League trophy to Lagos will give football fans across the State the opportunity to pose with the trophy is a great feat.
He said: “I am very pleased to be here today to present the Premier League trophy to football fans and give them the opportunity to stand next to the trophy.
“We make sure the trophy comes to Nigeria because this is one of the largest sporting nations.
“So, there is no way this trophy cannot be presented to the Nigerians for them to feel it.”
Sharma said his organisation is honoured to be a part of Nigeria, noting that the establishment of Guinness in Nigeria shows how important the country is and therefore urged Nigerians to believe in Nigeria’s potential as a country.
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