Mansa Ayoola Adeleke (RSS)
The Journey to Success Should Not Be a Struggle
A football team’s preparation for a match should not begin with worries about how comfortably its players will travel to the venue. Yet for followers of Bendel Insurance FC and Edo Queens FC, questions about the condition and suitability of the teams’ buses have lingered for years. Supporters have raised them on radio programmes. Buses have been reported in mechanics’ workshops. Players face long journeys of uncertain comfort. For clubs that carry Edo State’s sporting ambitions into national competitions, reliable transportation is not an extravagance. It is a basic operational necessity. This is not an attempt to diminish the work of the Edo State Government, the Edo State Sports Commission or the clubs’ management. It is a call to complement their efforts with a practical investment in players’ welfare.
A Day of Hope: The Unveiling of Kennedy Boboye
Today, October 14, 2026, marks exactly one year since Bendel Insurance unveiled Kennedy Boboye as head coach. The Benin-based club badly needed to turn its fortunes around and escape the relegation battle that followed its struggles under former coach Greg Ikenoba.
The ceremony, held at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium media centre in Benin City, was a grand affair. It was hosted by the chairman of the Edo State Sports Commission, Honourable Amadin Desmond Enabulele. Present were the commission’s executive directors for Edo South, Edo Central and Edo North, its permanent secretary, the Honourable Commissioner for Youth and local government representatives. Past and present Edo State FA chairmen, local FA officials, coaches, referees, retired and active footballers, SWAN representatives and the club’s supporters added colour to the occasion.
Among the dignitaries was the club’s chairman, Honourable Emperor Jarrett Tenebe, who also chairs the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Edo State.
Boboye promised to give his best to revive the club.But beyond the excitement, one statement by Tenebe has remained especially significant. Responding to the Chairman of the Bendel Insurance Supporters Club, Chief Osadolor Ogiefa, who expressly lamented the lack of buses for the group and the teams, Tenebe acknowledged that Bendel Insurance had been operating without an official, serviceable team bus, and he promised that Bendel Insurance, Edo Queens and both teams’ supporters’ clubs would receive buses.
It was a welcome promise that spoke directly to the clubs’ practical needs. Today, 365 days later, the question is unavoidable: Where are the buses?
Twelve Months Later, the Question Remains
As of October 10, 2026, the question of when the buses will arrive remains unanswered, at least from the information available to this writer. Around January, there were reports that the governor had promised to release buses to the teams. Yet there has been no publicly confirmed delivery.
This Writer is compelled to ask a simple question on behalf of supporters and sports journalists: when exactly will these buses arrive?
A Team That Travels Across Nigeria
Bendel Insurance’s work does not end at Benin City’s boundaries. Since the promise was made, the team has crisscrossed the country for league and cup fixtures. It has travelled to nearby Ondo and Delta, and on longer trips to Oyo, Lagos, Ogun and Kwara. In the north, it has faced Kano Pillars, Katsina United and Barau FC, with other fixtures against Plateau United and Nasarawa United.
Such journeys underline why transport matters. Footballers need more than salaries, training facilities and match bonuses to perform at their best. They also need decent arrangements before, during and after matches.
A Team Bus Is Not a Luxury
An official team bus is not a perk reserved for wealthy clubs. It is a working tool for any serious football organisation. A suitable bus offers comfort, better travel arrangements and the chance for players to arrive in better condition.
Imagine long road journeys in vehicles with limited space, cramped seating and little legroom. How can anyone expect players to be fully prepared for demanding fixtures when the trip to the stadium takes its toll? A well-equipped bus makes a real difference, especially when a team travels several hours before competing.
The same applies to Edo Queens, who represent the state in women’s football, and to the supporters’ clubs, whose members travel to cheer both teams and were explicitly included in the chairman’s promise. If the commitment was made to all these groups, there should be clarity about plans, timelines and progress.
Beyond Salaries: Players’ Welfare
Salaries, bonuses and allowances matter, but players also need proper accommodation, medical care, training facilities and comfortable transport. These contribute to a team’s overall welfare.
The concern here is not that players have complained publicly. It is that their welfare deserves attention even when they stay silent. Good management should not wait for a protest.
When Promises Get Publicity, Delivery Should Too
In Nigerian football administration, big announcements often attract headlines and praise. The same attention is not always sustained when it comes to delivery.
Picture the coverage if the buses were handed over tomorrow. Newspapers, radio, television and social media would celebrate it as a bold investment in sports development. Accountability must work both ways: if a promise deserves recognition when made, its fulfilment deserves public confirmation, and a missed timeline deserves an explanation.
This Writer is compelled to stress that the aim is not to embarrass anyone. It is to encourage transparency so that commitments become tangible benefits.
The Complaints Have Been Loud
Supporters have repeatedly called radio programmes to ask what is wrong with the teams and why clubs from a state with such a rich football heritage still struggle to get suitable buses. Some callers have lamented seeing the buses parked in mechanics’ workshops. Others have spoken of meeting them on the highway and worrying about their rickety condition.
Some may argue that Bendel Insurance has managed by hiring commercial buses, such as those associated with Edo Line or Muye Line, as has reportedly been the practice over the last five years. But this problem did not begin with the current administration. Journalists and ardent followers raised the same questions during former governor Godwin Obaseki’s time. That the issue has outlived administrations makes it all the more important to settle it for good, rather than through another cycle of promises and stopgaps.
Commendation Where Due, Accountability Where Needed
This writer recognises the efforts of the Edo State Sports Commission under Honourable Amadin Desmond Enabulele. The commission, its chairman, his team and the board of directors have been hardworking and proactive in supporting the state’s sporting teams, and they deserve commendation.
But praise should not silence honest observation. It is embarrassing and discouraging for professional footballers to be squeezed into vehicles not designed for a football club’s needs. It would also be unfortunate for a club that has received considerable support from the commission to be seen as poorly organised simply because it lacks suitable transport.
This is not a criticism of the players, coaches or administrators working under existing circumstances. A club is judged not only on the pitch but also by the structures behind the scenes.
Progress on the Pitch Raises the Stakes
Since Boboye took charge, the players and technical crew have delivered commendable results. The club narrowly missed a continental qualification slot in the 2025–2026 season, and the 2026–2027 campaign has begun with encouraging signs. The players and coaching crew deserve praise, as does the management under Director Enabebe.
When a club is striving to compete with the best, the support it receives away from the pitch should match its ambitions. The same holds for Edo Queens, whose achievements have put the state on the map of Nigerian women’s football.
Indeed, should we also discuss the ₦50 million reportedly given to Edo Queens after their league triumph and WAFU B success? Analysts may disagree on whether that is sufficient recognition, but that debate deserves its own space. The larger point is that these clubs are symbols of Edo’s sporting identity, and celebrating their victories must go hand in hand with giving them the resources to keep winning.
Governor Okpebholo Must Not Wait for Another Public Outcry
This Writer is compelled to urge Governor Monday Okpebholo to give this matter the attention it deserves. He should not have to wait for players to speak out, or for a bus to break down on the highway, before acting. Such incidents have reportedly occurred under the previous administration, and there is no reason to leave the state’s teams exposed to them again. Preventing a problem is always better than reacting to an avoidable crisis.
It is equally important that Honourable Jarrett Tenebe, chairman of Bendel Insurance and of the Edo APC, once again brings the matter to the governor’s attention.
The request is simple: provide Bendel Insurance and Edo Queens with suitable official team buses that meet the demands of professional football. They should be durable, comfortable and properly equipped for long-distance travel. The teams’ needs, not the appeal of a ceremonial handover, should determine the specifications.
Rivers United: An Example Worth Examining
If Edo State needs a model, Rivers United offers one. The Port Harcourt-based club has been seen using quality team buses, and successive Rivers State administrations have supported it, including with team transportation.
Why should Edo State not aim for a similar standard? The goal is not to rival Rivers State or replicate its spending, but to recognise that proper transport is an achievable investment that improves working conditions for players and technical crews. Edo has a proud football history, and appropriate buses would be another practical way to show its commitment. The state should not celebrate its teams only when they win trophies. It should invest in the conditions that help them prepare, travel and compete.
But beyond the excitement, one statement by Tenebe has remained especially significant. Responding to the Chairman of the Bendel Insurance Supporters Club, Chief Osadolor Ogiefa, who expressly lamented the lack of buses for the group and the teams, Tenebe acknowledged that Bendel Insurance had been operating without an official, serviceable team bus, and he promised that Bendel Insurance, Edo Queens and both teams’ supporters’ clubs would receive buses.
It was a welcome promise that spoke directly to the clubs’ practical needs. Today, 365 days later, the question is unavoidable: Where are the buses?
Twelve Months Later, the Question Remains
As of October 10, 2026, the question of when the buses will arrive remains unanswered, at least from the information available to this writer. Around January, there were reports that the governor had promised to release buses to the teams. Yet there has been no publicly confirmed delivery.
This Writer is compelled to ask a simple question on behalf of supporters and sports journalists: when exactly will these buses arrive?
A Team That Travels Across Nigeria
Bendel Insurance’s work does not end at Benin City’s boundaries. Since the promise was made, the team has crisscrossed the country for league and cup fixtures. It has travelled to nearby Ondo and Delta, and on longer trips to Oyo, Lagos, Ogun and Kwara. In the north, it has faced Kano Pillars, Katsina United and Barau FC, with other fixtures against Plateau United and Nasarawa United.
Such journeys underline why transport matters. Footballers need more than salaries, training facilities and match bonuses to perform at their best. They also need decent arrangements before, during and after matches.
A Team Bus Is Not a Luxury
An official team bus is not a perk reserved for wealthy clubs. It is a working tool for any serious football organisation. A suitable bus offers comfort, better travel arrangements and the chance for players to arrive in better condition.
Imagine long road journeys in vehicles with limited space, cramped seating and little legroom. How can anyone expect players to be fully prepared for demanding fixtures when the trip to the stadium takes its toll? A well-equipped bus makes a real difference, especially when a team travels several hours before competing.
The same applies to Edo Queens, who represent the state in women’s football, and to the supporters’ clubs, whose members travel to cheer both teams and were explicitly included in the chairman’s promise. If the commitment was made to all these groups, there should be clarity about plans, timelines and progress.
Beyond Salaries: Players’ Welfare
Salaries, bonuses and allowances matter, but players also need proper accommodation, medical care, training facilities and comfortable transport. These contribute to a team’s overall welfare.
The concern here is not that players have complained publicly. It is that their welfare deserves attention even when they stay silent. Good management should not wait for a protest.
When Promises Get Publicity, Delivery Should Too
In Nigerian football administration, big announcements often attract headlines and praise. The same attention is not always sustained when it comes to delivery.
Picture the coverage if the buses were handed over tomorrow. Newspapers, radio, television and social media would celebrate it as a bold investment in sports development. Accountability must work both ways: if a promise deserves recognition when made, its fulfilment deserves public confirmation, and a missed timeline deserves an explanation.
This Writer is compelled to stress that the aim is not to embarrass anyone. It is to encourage transparency so that commitments become tangible benefits.
The Complaints Have Been Loud
Supporters have repeatedly called radio programmes to ask what is wrong with the teams and why clubs from a state with such a rich football heritage still struggle to get suitable buses. Some callers have lamented seeing the buses parked in mechanics’ workshops. Others have spoken of meeting them on the highway and worrying about their rickety condition.
Some may argue that Bendel Insurance has managed by hiring commercial buses, such as those associated with Edo Line or Muye Line, as has reportedly been the practice over the last five years. But this problem did not begin with the current administration. Journalists and ardent followers raised the same questions during former governor Godwin Obaseki’s time. That the issue has outlived administrations makes it all the more important to settle it for good, rather than through another cycle of promises and stopgaps.
Commendation Where Due, Accountability Where Needed
This writer recognises the efforts of the Edo State Sports Commission under Honourable Amadin Desmond Enabulele. The commission, its chairman, his team and the board of directors have been hardworking and proactive in supporting the state’s sporting teams, and they deserve commendation.
But praise should not silence honest observation. It is embarrassing and discouraging for professional footballers to be squeezed into vehicles not designed for a football club’s needs. It would also be unfortunate for a club that has received considerable support from the commission to be seen as poorly organised simply because it lacks suitable transport.
Your presence at almost every match played by both Edo Queens and Bendel Insurance has been a tremendous source of motivation for the players. Your visits to their training sessions, regular telephone calls, words of encouragement, personal donations to players and officials, and willingness to stand by them during difficult moments have not gone unnoticed. Many who understand your capacity and commitment have applauded these gestures. In many respects, you have been a father figure to these teams.
You have also made efforts to ensure that, while they await their own buses, alternative transport arrangements are available to take them to their destinations. This deserves recognition. However, there is a fundamental difference between owning an asset and relying on borrowed resources.
It is therefore important, indeed imperative, that Bendel Insurance has its own official team bus. Beyond convenience, a dedicated bus represents identity, belonging, stability and institutional pride. It reinforces the players’ confidence that the club’s leadership is committed to their welfare, not only through personal gestures and attendance at matches, but also through providing the facilities they need to perform at their best.
The players deserve to travel for away fixtures in a bus they can call their own—one that offers comfort, safety and peace of mind, even on difficult roads. They deserve to arrive at their destinations feeling rested and prepared for the task ahead, rather than having to contend with the uncertainty and discomfort of temporary transport arrangements.
Your commitment to these teams is already evident. Providing Bendel Insurance with a reliable official team bus would be another significant step towards building a lasting legacy—one that the players, officials and supporters can appreciate for years to come.
This is not a criticism of the players, coaches or administrators working under existing circumstances. A club is judged not only on the pitch but also by the structures behind the scenes.
Progress on the Pitch Raises the Stakes
Since Boboye took charge, the players and technical crew have delivered commendable results. The club narrowly missed a continental qualification slot in the 2025–2026 season, and the 2026–2027 campaign has begun with encouraging signs. The players and coaching crew deserve praise, as does the management under Director Enabebe.
When a club is striving to compete with the best, the support it receives away from the pitch should match its ambitions. The same holds for Edo Queens, whose achievements have put the state on the map of Nigerian women’s football.
Indeed, should we also discuss the ₦50 million reportedly given to Edo Queens after their league triumph and WAFU B success? Analysts may disagree on whether that is sufficient recognition, but that debate deserves its own space. The larger point is that these clubs are symbols of Edo’s sporting identity, and celebrating their victories must go hand in hand with giving them the resources to keep winning.
Governor Okpebholo Must Not Wait for Another Public Outcry
This Writer is compelled to urge Governor Monday Okpebholo to give this matter the attention it deserves. He should not have to wait for players to speak out, or for a bus to break down on the highway, before acting. Such incidents have reportedly occurred under the previous administration, and there is no reason to leave the state’s teams exposed to them again. Preventing a problem is always better than reacting to an avoidable crisis.
It is equally important that Honourable Jarrett Tenebe, chairman of Bendel Insurance and of the Edo APC, once again brings the matter to the governor’s attention.
The request is simple: provide Bendel Insurance and Edo Queens with suitable official team buses that meet the demands of professional football. They should be durable, comfortable and properly equipped for long-distance travel. The teams’ needs, not the appeal of a ceremonial handover, should determine the specifications.
Rivers United: An Example Worth Examining
If Edo State needs a model, Rivers United offers one. The Port Harcourt-based club has been seen using quality team buses, and successive Rivers State administrations have supported it, including with team transportation.
Why should Edo State not aim for a similar standard? The goal is not to rival Rivers State or replicate its spending, but to recognise that proper transport is an achievable investment that improves working conditions for players and technical crews. Edo has a proud football history, and appropriate buses would be another practical way to show its commitment. The state should not celebrate its teams only when they win trophies. It should invest in the conditions that help them prepare, travel and compete.
A Final Appeal
Let it be clear that this writer is neither a member of Bendel Insurance nor a player or official of the club. This is the voice of a journalist who believes that anything worth doing at all is worth doing well. This is not hostility towards the Edo State Government, the Sports Commission or the clubs’ management. It is a desire to see Edo’s football institutions get the support they deserve.
I do not want to believe that the current administration will follow the path critics have attributed to its predecessor, particularly in recognising and supporting the state’s football achievements.
Honourable Jarrett Tenebe should help remind Governor Okpebholo of the promise made a year ago. The governor should bring the process of providing buses for Bendel Insurance, Edo Queens and the supporters’ clubs to a conclusion, with a clear delivery timeline. Players should not endure uncomfortable journeys while representing the state. Coaches should not worry about transport arrangements. Supporters should not keep raising the same concerns on the radio year after year.
A properly equipped team bus may seem a simple provision, but it sends a powerful message about how a club and its players are valued. The time has come to move from promises to delivery.
One year after the promise, the question remains: where are the buses?
This Writer will pause here and await the fulfilment of that promise. Until then, the conversation stays open, and the expectations of Bendel Insurance and Edo Queens supporters remain unchanged.
Arrivederci!