By Steve Oma-Ofozor,
Lagos
The Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) of Nigeria has called on the Ministry of Sport and Youth Development to make golf one of its priorities in the country’s sports development.
Johnbull Dangofa, the PGA of Nigeria Director of Tournament in a chat with SOKOnnect during the week believes that golf is being neglected in the country by the ministry with regards to other sports as football and athletics.
However, dwelling on the state of golf in the country the Director of Tournament affirmed, “The Ministry of Sport from its annual budget does not take golf into consideration; the evidence is clear and the game is suffering from the neglect.”
“It’s a fact that over time, golf teams have always struggled to survive; they don’t get single assistance from the government even in representing the country at international tournaments – the team or individuals will have to take care of themselves; sadly sponsors are not easy to come by in the present dispensation because of the economic situation.
“But the interesting thing is that golf has always done Nigeria proud at international and local tournaments – individually and as a team at professional and amateur levels; golf has given Nigeria medals, there are enough proofs to justify the relevance of golf to the socioeconomic development of the country; though some Nigerians may not reckon with it because of the feelings that the game is for the rich,” he said.
Dangofa also maintained that golf has changed the lives of many Nigerians in recent times, noting that the situation could be better with proper funding assistance from the government through the Ministry of Sport and Youth Development.
“The PGA of Nigeria and the Nigeria Golf Federation (NGF) have always worked together for the common goal of promoting the game for good, but adequate funding has remained a major setback, only the Ministry of Sport can effectively assist us to survive the hurdles,” he concluded.
It would be recalled that golf was one of the sports that topped the medals table at the 2020 National Sports Festival (NSF) which held in Benin City, Edo State capital in April 2021.
