LEANNA MacLARTY
Leaders of Glasgow's Commonwealth Games bid are preparing to take action after Nigeria's Sports Minister was reported to have criticised the city.
It is understood Bala Kaoje spoke out against levels of crime and poverty in Glasgow, which is competing with the Nigerian capital Abuja in its bid to host the games in 2014.
Mr Kaoje was reported as saying: "If you take the statistics for crime in Scotland and compare it with the crimes of Abuja, Abuja will be better off. The type of amenities enjoyed by Glasgow citizens is less. I am sure we will beat them in terms of presentation."
The Glasgow bid team have notified the Commonwealth Games Federation of the minister's remarks and are now awaiting a response.
Derek Casey, the Glasgow 2014 bid director, said that the comments had broken the rules which forbid rival cities from commenting on each other. He said: "It is unfortunate that according to reports the Nigerian Sports Minister has chosen to ignore both this protocol and the comparative indicators in his own country."
A spokesman for the bid team added: "This isn't the first time that a spokesperson has made comments like these and said that Glasgow has no chance of winning."
Contrary to Mr Kaoje's claims, figures show that recorded crime in Strathclyde fell in 2005-06 by 4.5%, a reduction of 9000 incidents. The five-year figure shows a reduction in crime of 3.4%.
Nigeria, where almost 70 foreigners have been abducted this year, has also put up only £550,000 in its budget to cover security. This amount falls massively short of Glasgow's £26.2m to cover security.
A bid team insider branded the Nigerian Sports Minister's comments "absolutely ridiculous" and "totally unacceptable".
The amount budgeted for security comes from the official lodging of each country's bid, which happened at a ceremony in London on May 9, just days before the remarks were made.
Glasgow's bid offers a package of training and sports development worth £50,000 to each of the 70 countries involved. Instead of a package meeting the individual needs of each country, Abuja is offering £62,00 cash to each commonwealth participant.
The Nigerian bid also includes free flights to the country for every athlete, plus three business-class return trips for the two senior officials from all 70 countries. Glasgow has offered a travel package of £4.29m which it says is more flexible than it's rival's.
Mr Casey previously told The Herald he was not worried about the difference in figures, saying voters will concentrate on what's best for athletes, not bank accounts.
The Commonwealth Games Federation are due to vote on the bids on November 9. Abuja will be the first African country to host the games if it wins. If Glasgow wins, there are plans to build more than 1000 homes on the bank of the Clyde to house 8000 athletes.
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