This clarification, he said, became necessary due to numerous enquiries on the fate of the festival following the recent happenings in the sports world.

The growing number of Coronavirus victims across the world has led to the postponement of the Japan 2020 Olympic Games and the Paralympics till 2021 by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Speaking through his Special Adviser (Media), John Joshua Akanji, the minister said that the ministry was following the turn of events and would make the right decision when the time comes.

“The Federal Government is on top of the Coronavirus issue and will take a decision on the festival only when it is satisfied that peoples lives would not be threatened by the virus,” he said.

The National Sports Festival, which was supposed to begin last weekend in Benin, Edo State, was postponed on orders from the Presidency.

Akanji revealed that as a way of helping the fight against the deadly COVID-19, the ministry has provided 57 suites and the health facilities at the MKO Abiola National Stadium, Abuja for use as an isolation centre for victims of the virus.