President of Port Harcourt Polo Club, Dr. Chukwudi Dimkpa, has revealed that the club under his watch is using the game of Polo as an instrument of bringing young people out of restiveness.
Dimkpa made the disclosure in an interview with journalists at the kick-off of the 2023 NPA Port Harcourt Polo Club International Polo tournament in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.
“Like you all know, sports is a way of keeping our youths active, and once they are active, they will not be restive.”
“So as at today, the Port Harcourt Polo Club is using Polo to engage the younger ones
Engr. Dimkpa used the occasion to highlight achievements of the Club and also expressed happiness that the annual Port Harcourt international Polo tournament has become a global brand that keeps improving year-on-year.
“O yes, it gets better, this is normal, the tournament gets better by the day”
“In the Niger Delta, we have a sister club we assisted in opening in Bayelsa a few years ago. So there are two Polo Clubs in the Niger Delta.
Dimkpa used the opportunity to dispel misleading notions that the game of Polo is meant for a certain class of people in the society, stating that the only major criteria to become a polo player is to love the game and horses
“You have to first love horses. That’s the major criteria, and then you apply and go through the interview process.
“When they say it’s not meant for the common man, it’s a myth. Polo is a game of kings and everybody, even that common man is king in his kitchen, which means you are a king, so the game is for you. “
“So, it’s a myth when they say it’s not meant for the common man. We need to even ask, who a common man is, define a common man?”
Engr. Dimkpa, who is a member of the Governing Board of the Niger Delta Development Commission, representing Rivers state enjoined Polo enthusiasts and fun seekers to relax and enjoy the game and beautiful evenings activities in a relaxed atmosphere
He thanked security agencies, in particular the Nigerian Navy, for assisting in providing adequate security and allayed fears of any form of challenges or breaches. He also assured of a hitch-free environment during the week-long tournament activities.
“There are no challenges. You can see that security is topnotch, we thank the Nigerian Navy, the police and other agencies for turning up and assisting us with security-related matters”
“As usual, we strive to make our tournament crime free. We’ve managed to get a hang of that.”
“The normal challenges are the pressure to actually organise and execute a tournament, but we are here, we are here, it’s already time, so let’s enjoy the games and the after activities”, Dimkpa
