The 5th edition of the annual Inter-Ministerial Football Competition also known as the Head of Service (HOS) Football Cup Competition enters the semi final stage on Monday July 8, 2013. The first semifinal match that would kick-off by 3pm at the Sharks Football Club Stadium will be between the Ministry of Sports and their Special Duties counterparts while the second semifinal will be played by 12 noon on Tuesday July 9, 2013 between the Ministry of Justice and the winner of the best losers in the round of 16 which are the Government House team and the Ministry of Transport scheduled for 1pm on Monday.
Losers of both semifinal matches will slug it out in the third place match scheduled for Thursday July 11, 2013 at the Sharks Football Club Stadium while the finals would hold at the Liberation stadium Elekahia on Tuesday July 16, 2013 to round off the Civil Service Week Celebration.
To qualify for the Semifinals, Ministry of Sports beat Ministry of Information and Communications 2-0, while Ministry of Special Duties defeated the Civil Service Commission 4-0 and the Ministry of Justice beat their Health counterparts 4-1 through penalty shot out after the full time ended goalless.
Meanwhile, the heat events of the 100 metres, 4×100 metres relay races and the tug of war competition would hold at 2 pm at the Liberation Stadium Elekahia on Tuesday July 9, 2013. A statement by the Sports Sub-Committee of the 2013 Civil Service Week Planning Committee urged all participants to report at the venue on time.
In a related development, the Head of Service, Barr Samuel LongJohn has urged all participants in the sporting events to put in their best as those who excel would be chosen to represent the State Public Service at the national Public Service games. Barr LongJohn stated this at the Sharks Football Club Stadium, Port Harcourt last Thursday during the official kick-off ceremony of the Head of Service Football Cup Competition. He advised participants in all the sporting events to compete in tendency of the of fair play and sportsmanship and eschew the tendency to win at all cost spirit, adding that the objective of the games is to enable workers engage in exercises to keep fit.
The 2013 Civil Service week Celebration is scheduled to begin with a Thanksgiving Service at St. Cyprian’s Anglican Church, Hospital Road, Port Harcourt on Sunday July 14, 2013 while the official opening ceremony would hold on Monday July 15 at the Main Bowl of the Alfred Diete-Spiff Civic Centre, Port Harcourt.
The Civil Service Day is observed annually in the whole of Africa on June 23 in recognition of the contributions of the Civil Service to national development. This year’s
