Athletes representing Ogun State at the 22nd National Sports Festival, also known as the Gateway Games, staged a protest on Wednesday, May 28, 2025, over unpaid allowances, blocking the gates of the games village at Babcock University and leaving several participants and officials stranded.
According to The PUNCH, the protest, which occurred just two days before the official close of the festival, was triggered by a shortfall in allowance payments.
Although the athletes confirmed receipt of ₦50,000 — a sum earlier promised by the state governor — and ₦140,000 as festival allowance, they insisted that the agreed sum was ₦210,000, calculated at ₦15,000 daily for 14 days.
One athlete, speaking anonymously, said, “We have been paid ₦50,000 this morning, which was what the governor promised, but to our amazement, they started paying ₦140,000 instead of ₦210,000.”
In a show of unity, the athletes vowed not to vacate the games village until the full balance was paid. “We are not leaving this place until the money is complete. Even if it remains ₦50, we won’t go. It has to be complete,” another protesting athlete stated.
The standoff led to the disruption of scheduled finals, as transportation for participating teams was halted due to the roadblock created by the protesting athletes.
Before the festival commenced, Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, had promised ₦2.5 million for each gold medalist, ₦1.5 million for silver, and ₦1 million for bronze medalists from the state.
As of Wednesday, Ogun State was third on the medals table, having secured 48 gold, 38 silver, and 47 bronze medals.
Efforts to reach festival officials or representatives from the Ministry of Sports for comments on the athletes’ grievances were unsuccessful at the time of filing this report.
The Gateway Games are expected to end on Friday, May 30, 2025.
