The Ohanaeze Youth Council ( OYC), youth wing of the apex Igbo socio- cultural organisation, the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has urged the Federal Government to immortalise the late Super Eagles midfielder, Samuel Okwaraji, who died while playing for the country, twenty seven years ago.
In a press statement issued yesterday by its Enugu State chapter, the group lamented that twenty five years after he lost his life while struggling to make Nigeria proud in the comity of footballing nations, the Federal Government is yet to immortalise the late prolific midfielder.
OYC said that the Federal Government would go along way to encourage youths across the country to be patriotic, by immortalizing Okwaraji. It argued that the unsavory treatment meted out to the ex-International after his demise has discouraged many youths from striving to contribute towards national development.
OYC also said successive leaderships of the Nigerian Foootball Federation (NFF) and its predecessor, the Nigerian Football Association (NFA) should apologize to the family of the late footballer in particular and Nigerians in general for doing little or nothing to honor the memory of the deceased.
The youth group regretted that dedicated and committed Nigerians like Okwaraji, who lived and died for the country remain unsung while people who stole from the nation’s treasury are daily being celebrated. OYC also enjoined the Federal and the Enugu State government to give attention to the welfare of the family to assuage their pains.
Similarly, the family of the late Super Eagles midfielder has accused the federal government of neglecting the family since Okwaraji’s death 27 years ago. The Okwarajis also want their late son immortalized.
Speaking during the week, elder brother to late Okwaraji, Patrick, regretted that since the death of his younger brother, past governments have refused to honour the family despite series of calls and letters put across to them by the family.
“Sam Okwaraji was a doctorate degree graduate. He played football at top level. If not for death, he would have been very great today. People like Patrick Ekeji who read as much as Sam, later became the Director of Sports in Nigeria for almost 10 years. When you check all these, you know the weight of his loss to the family. His death is a very big loss to the family. Loss of life, memory and no rememberance. Imagine nothing like entitlement too since then till now.
“The Nigerian government is not showing sign of appreciation even to immortalize him. Even though the government is not doing anything about him, let his legacy impact fire up the younger ones. Look at the mother of Sam, a former international footballer. She is okay but she would have been better if his son was still alive today. She would have been a happier woman on earth. Like she said before, she has handed over everything to God,” he said.
Okwaraji, who was born on the 19th of May, 1964, played internationally for Nigeria. He was also a qualified lawyer who had a masters in international law from the University of Rome. He collapsed and died of congestive heart failure in the 77th minute of a World cup qualification match against Angola at the National Stadium in Surulere, Lagos State on 12 August 1989.
He made the Green Eagles squad in 1988 and at that year’s African Nations Cup, he scored one of the fastest goals in the history of the championship against the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon. He played along until the final match, where the Eagles lost to their perennial rivals Cameroon by a lone goal.
Okwaraji collapsed ten minutes from the end of a 1990 World Cup Qualifier against Angola in Lagos and died from congestive heart failure. An autopsy showed that the 25-year-old had an enlarged heart and high blood pressure. The sudden death was similar to that of Marc-Vivien Foé 14 years later.