Armwrestling board engages Prison, Immigration Services on sports promotion
The leadership of the Ghana Armwrestling Federation (GAF) has paid courtesy calls on two security agencies- the Ghana Prison Service (GPS) and Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) in Accra.
It was aimed to further strengthening the relationship between the federation and the services, and discuss their participation in sports, especially armwrestling.
At the Prison Service, they were welcomed by the Director-General, Mrs Patience Baffoe-Bonnie, who made a commitment to prioritise sports, particularly armwrestling as a major tool in lifting the image of the service.
She said sports contribute immensely in building officers and inmates both physically and mentally.
“I have played and administered sports throughout my life. This made me disciplined, active and has played a key role in where I am today. Sports built my confidence and gave me the platform to shine so I know what sports can do and how it can transform individuals into becoming better people,” she explained.
She said the Directorate was engaging with other authorities to get inmates and officers of the service to actively play sports for correction and unearth more talent.
At the Immigration office, Mr Samuel Basintale Amadu, the Comptroller General Immigration (CGI), stated that the Service has been actively involved in sports but had lived on past glory for long, hence the need to rekindle a vibrant sports team to transform the institution.
Mr Amadu assured that plans were underway to recruit new players into the security service for the various sports disciplines and wished the team well as they work tirelessly to develop the sport.
Mr Charles Osei Asibey, President of the GAF and Armwrestling Federation of Africa (AFA), who led the delegation, thanked the leadership of the two services and was confident the relationship with the services would yield the desired results.
He recalled the years when the Ghana Prisons Service used to be a tough competitor in sports, producing some top notch athletes like Felix Aboagye, Eric Nkansah, Mark Anthony Awere etc. for Ghana.
He further described the GIS as one of its key partners since the inception of the sport in 2016, having produced the current national team captain, Edward Asamoah, and international referee, Nii Otoo Larkyne.
Moreover, Mr Asibey indicated that the GAF’s success at the 2023 Africa Games, where Ghana won 41 medals in armwrestling alone, would not have been possible without the performance of personnel from the Ghana Immigration Service.
He encouraged the two services to focus much on sports to use the platform as a tool to uplift the image of the service.
Mr Asibey was accompanied by Dr Kofi Addo Agyekum, Vice President-GAF, Mr Dickson Kyere Duah, Member of Parliament for Berekum West Constituency, Mr Husseini Akueteh Addy-Technical Director Mr Godfrey Amarteifio, Mr Prosper Ashiquaye, Ms Phillipina Frimpong and other key members.
BY TIMES SPORTS
REPORTER
