Damishi Sango
| Damishi Tonson Sango | |
|---|---|
| Minister of Sports | |
|
In office June 1999 – January 2001 |
|
| Preceded by | Air Commodore Samson Emeka Omeruah |
| Succeeded by | Ishaya Mark Aku |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
1 January 1950 Riyom LGA, Plateau State, Nigeria |
Hon Damishi Tonson Sango (born 1 January 1950) was appointed Nigerian Minister of Sports in the first cabinet of President Olusegun Obasanjo, holding office between June 1999 and January 2001. He was a challenger to become the People's Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate for Plateau State in 1999 and 2007, and ran for Plateau State governor on the Alliance for Democracy (AD) platform in 2003.
Damishi Sango was born on 1 January 1950 in Ganawuri, in Riyom Local Government Area of Plateau State and belongs to the Aten minority ethnic group. He obtained a grade II teacher's certificate in 1973 and began working as an elementary school teacher, later becoming headmaster. Attending the University of Jos, he earned a B.Sc in History in 1982 and a Masters in Comparative Politics in 1986. He was appointed to the boards of Jos International Breweries and the Christian Pilgrim's Welfare Board.
In 1987 Sango was elected Chairman of the Barakin Ladi Local Government Area in Plateau State. In 1993 he became Plateau State's presidential nominee for the Social Democratic Party under the option A4 system. However he failed to become a candidate in the national elections, which were anyway annulled by the military administration. After the return to democracy with the Nigerian Fourth Republic, Sango was one of the three main aspirants to be PDP candidate for governor of Plateau State, the other two being David Jang and Joshua Dariye. He was thought to have come second in the PDP primaries after Jang, with Dariye third. However, the National headquarters selected Dariye as PDP candidate, and he went on to be elected governor.
Sango was sworn in as Sports Minister in June 1999 in President Olusegun Obasanjo's first cabinet. He later confessed that he knew nothing about sports when assigned the job. During his period of office, Nigeria competed in the All African Games in South Africa (September 1999) and the Olympic Games in Australia (September 2000), and the national football team the Super Eagles played in several international competitions. In January 2001 president Obasanjo dropped Sango from his cabinet. In December 2009, Sango criticized the practice of constantly replacing sports ministers after a year or so in office. He recommended that they should have a 10-year tenure, so they could have time to make real improvements, and could be held accountable for results.
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