Kwankwaso wants Pillars FC to be the best in Nigeria – Abba Yola

As the chairman of Kano Pillars FC new management committee, what is your committee doing to move the club forward?Well when we were inaugurated about 3 weeks ago at the kano State government house chambers, the governor in his speech, first of all challenged the new management to look for ways that it can generate […]

As the chairman of Kano Pillars FC new management committee, what is your committee doing to move the club forward?
Well when we were inaugurated about 3 weeks ago at the kano State government house chambers, the governor in his speech, first of all challenged the new management to look for ways that it can generate a lot of money to run the club rather than depending solely on government. That was the first challenge. The other challenge we had was to make the club to be the best in the country. Thank God the team is performing well and right now it running neck to neck with Heartland. It is not difficult really to fashion out ways that will take the club to greater heights and that is what the management is doing right now. We are working out some few things that we believe if applied will certainly give us what we want in that club. We want to make it one of the best premier clubs, one of the richest in the country. We have ideas and we are trying to tinker with them at the management level. God willing, I believe we shall get there. I believe that with the calibre of people in the management and the support we are getting from the governor, His Excellency, Dr. Rabi’u Musa kwankwaso, the sky is the limit for us. He has actually challenged us to come up with something in the next ten days like a blueprint on how best the club can sustain itself and we are working towards that.
You just signed a deal with BUA. Are you expecting more of such sponsorship deals?
Yes there are more to come because the BUA one is just the beginning. We started with BUA because by the time we came in the former management had already gone far with them. We just came in at the last minute and we accepted the sponsorship package but we are working hard to get more companies to come and partner with us in branding the products that we are going to put on the table for them. So far so good BUA is just the starting point. I am sure in the next couple of weeks we would come up with something bigger and better than what we have right now.
You said government has challenged the committee to make Pillars self sustaining. Are you not worried that government may back out suddenly in terms of funding the club?
Government will not back out so soon because when we came in we met some few debts here and there and when it was taken up with his Excellency, he had already set up a committee of three or four commissioners to look into the outstanding issues like the match bonuses, sign on fees, and transfer fees. Luckily the committee presented its findings at the last state executive council meeting and the council has graciously approved that these issues be sorted out once and for all. You can see that there is no way government can completely say we have hands off. However we are trying to see that even if they say we have completely hands off we can move on. That would sound like some relief to the government.
Sometimes one is made to feel sports in Kano is all about Kano Pillars FC. What is government doing to develop other sports in the state?
Honestly, His Excellency has widened the scope of sports development in the country. He is building a massive kind of sports facility, Karfi Sports Academy which is a full fledged sports academy where the youths can develop their talents in sports. If you are going into kano from Abuja you will see the massive construction. He recently went to Qatar I think to look at the Aspire Academy. He has been asking questions on how best to bring up the academy to be the best in the country. We also have the DanAgundi sports complex on Bayero University road to accommodate 12 sports including facilities for sports men and women with special disabilities. The governor wants to ensure that Kano State is adequately brought into sports because a healthy nation is a wealthy nation and once we are able to harness the potentials in the youths, we would get something out of them and drastically reduce the vices in them when they participate in sports, even if for leisure.
Did your appointment come to you as a surprise?
You see we have an executive governor who always goes for what he knows is the best. He goes for what will make him deliver qualitative services to the people of Kano. Our governor is such that wherever you are he knows that this is your field and you can contribute to the development of kano. The governor without letting you to lobby, can invite you to come and join his team in the transformation agenda. He is carrying out transformation of all the sectors in Kano and definitely sports is one of them.
Presiding over Pillars will certainly come with a lot of challenges. How prepared are you to face the pressure and the challenges?
Yes it is a very big challenge especially in Kano where people have passion for Pillars football club. It is more than a passion I can say. Once Pillars lose matches, you won’t have any peace anymore but it is normal in sports at times you lose at times you win. It is a kind of two way traffic. Sometime when I think about this challenges I begin to shudder that can one carry this load? But then I have one thing which I will let you into it. I believe and I trust that God will never give me a challenge that I won’t be able to overcome. This is my belief, and at any given time if God gives me an assignment, he makes sure I succeed. I leave this present assignment to God because I know He will not allow me to fail. I will not fail on this assignment. I will deliver just the way I did when I was in the sports commission. There is no day that I doubt God doing it for me. It is not something that I went and lobbied for. God in his wisdom decided to give me this appointment and I believe that the same God who gave me the appointment will ensure that I succeed.
You sound some confident but are you sure other members of the management committee are on the same page with you?
The management committee I am leading is made up of people with integrity, ex-footballers, high calibre politicians who are well respected in the society. I believe that together we can move Kano Pillars FC forward.
For most fans of the club your success will be a continental ticket at the end of the season. Are you confident Pillars will successfully defend their title?
The issue of continental championship that Pillars have just lost is quite painful and what they went through is better imagined than said. I heard so many of them talking about the experience they had. It was not funny.  We even thank God that they all came back alive. We lost the chance to move forward but the players and officials are alive. Their lives are the most important thing. There is always another opportunity. This term, I believe Pillars will finish either first or second. Kano fans should bear with the team. It is normal for a team to lose, this is a sensitization programme that we are going to embark on. Thank God the league is free of violence. We are gradually getting there. We need the support of the fans to keep Pillars on top. I mean by going to the stadium, being peaceful and paying their gate fees to ensure that the club generates something from that aspect also.
Pillars FC is one of the most supported clubs in the country. What are you doing to maximize the benefits of such huge followership?
Kano Pillars FC is a vibrant product that we can really sell. That was how some clubs started elsewhere. And Pillars have the widest fan base that we are going to exploit maximally. We have almost 250,000 fans so that alone tells you we can make something out of that. We are working on that and I do not want to say much about it. In the next couple of weeks the, management will come up with a blueprint on how best to get money for the club.