Monrovia – The Liberia Kickball Federation has accused the Chief Patron of Sports, George M. Weah of marginalizing his federation since he took over as President of the nation.
LKF president, Emmanuel Surprise Whea said support has not been coming from the Government, something he feels is unfair to the country’s own grown sport.
According to Whea, who has been president of LKF for a year, President Weah has paid more attention to football than other sporting disciplines including Kickball, which he terms as unfair to them. Over 600 females participate in the country.
The national team of Liberia was given one of the 73 seated buses donated to the
government by the Indian government and presented 300 bags of 25 kg rice and 7,000 masks to the national team.
Speaking via telephone on a local radio, Whea said they have been overlooked for years.
“The last seven years the Liberia Kickball Federation has not received a dime from the Government through the Ministry of Youth and Sports,” he said.
He noted that last year US$1,050 was approved in the budget for Kickball but the money was not disbursed the association.
“Prior to this COVID 19, our President got some donation with those buses he made some donations to Federation of Liberian Youth, Liberia National Student Union and the Female Journalist Association, he got to sport he made a donation to the Football the Liberia Football Association and that donation was made by the Minister of Youth and sport ignoring the struggling Liberian game the Kickball we all praise,” he said.
“When our President was playing back in the days in high school he used to see the kickball game before a football game even our first lady, she played for the Minister of State during the Ministerial league and captained the team why are they not thinking.”
He further said Liberians are proud of having the only African to be world best that could introduce Kickball to the International Olympic committee, which he added, could be a great achievement for President Weah.
The LKF boss wonders why the President will decide not to support Liberia’s own sport but football. He stated that it is time for the Liberian Government to support Kickball and other sporting associations, noting that everyone will not play football.
When Youth and Sports Minister D. Zeogar Wilson was conatacted, he said the Chief Patron of Sport has not marginalized any sporting federation.
Minister Wilson disclosed that he signed all the necessary documents for the LKF to get its allocation for 2019 and it was only left with LKF to get their money from the Finance Ministry.
He disclosed that the bus that was given to the LFA was for all national teams in the country and not only the football national team.
“The President does not prioritize one federation over the other. He love all the sporting federation, let me make it clear here the rice and masks that we give to LFA was for the national team players and the bus is for all the national teams, do we have a national kickball team, no, so how can we give rice to the Kickball team,” Minister Wilson said.