RT. HON OROK OTU DUKE’S Table Tennis trainee, Idorenyin Udoka has won the gold medal for Cross River State at National youth games under 15 category in Illorin, kwara state.
Recall that she was recently awarded,the “Axari Hotel Ambassador”,when she emerged as the National Junior Champion in the girls category,earlier this year.
This comes against the backdrop of several administrative witch hunting, jealousy and antagonism by the Sports Commission, where Governor Ayade has denied his involvement in the entire imbroglio.
You could recall that the state Table Tennis complex was sealed two weeks to the Olympics games and Gewo games. This act was linked to Chief Duke’s refusal to defect to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The height of the misdemeanors was the Abuja Table Tennis Elections drama as one Ekanem Ekpenyong surfaced with a letters stopping Orok Duke’s accreditation to stand elections as he claimed the instruction was from the governor. The governor had hitherto denied links to such act.
However, Orok as the proprietor of Canaan City Table Tennis club is building an Olympic standard training facilities after the government administrative bottleneck.
Regrettably the state has lost many athletes to other countries and states that were groomed by Orok Duke after all hanky-panky politics that have rubbed on with their fortune.
Nevertheless, Duke remitted money to the CRS TT team, moved them from the Ilorin Camp to a befitting hotel and supported them to win the Gold medal in the female category for the state.
According to Duke, “what is going on, is a little irritation and shall pass away too. I have managed to groom and consolidate table tennis for over 33 years now and no disruption from ignorant people will be allowed to reverse that achievement. Governments have come and gone and the Table Tennis game has continued to thrive. We are to insist and ensure that this trend continues, regardless.”
Cross Riverians are indeed grateful for this latest by Miss Idorenyin Udoaka.
By Francis Etang, Biase Plantation Km 78, Cal/IkomH/way
