A young girls’ soccer team from Isiolo County is appealing for recognition and support from the political leadership so that they can effectively participate in regional and national level tournaments. The members of ‘Isiolo starlets’ have been organizing themselves and managed to compete in several contests and performed well but their effort was hampered by lack of adequate resources to make a mark in the region and nationally. The team are now calling upon Governor Ibrahim Guyo, Senator Fatuma Dullo, Women Rep Mumina Bonaya , Isiolo North and South MPs Joseph Samal and Mohamed Tupi to lend them a hand the way they had been doing with the boys’ teams. According to Halima Abubakar, the team Captain, the new squad has members drawn from school leavers but a few are still in Secondary schools who only join them for training on holidays and the day-scholars over the weekends. Abubakar said they lack adequate fame kits, foot balls and other necessary equipment but are grateful to Wabera Public Primary School for allowing them to use its playground for training. However the Captain expressed resentment at the lack of payment of a cash prize of Sh. 500,000 to the team after emerging as the winners of the ‘Talanta Hela’ tournament that was organized by the Ministry of sports in August this year. She said despite winning the tournament for the region comprising Marsabit, Samburu and Isiolo Counties and their goalkeeper winning the ‘golden glove award’ they were yet to receive the awards. ‘We have been following the matter with the County government but no one seems to assist us follow up for our hard earned prizes,’ Abubakar observed. She also appealed to the Cabinet Secretary for Sports Mr. Ababu Namwamba to intervene and have his Ministry reward the young talents so that their morale could be uplifted and give them a push to contest in many tournaments. The teams Couch Sadam Abdi said it a pity that his players have not been rewarded after they won the regional tournament and wonders how they would take part in the ‘Talanta Hela’ national level competition in December without the cash reward they had planned to use in team’s preparation for the event. Abdi also called on the political leadership and other well-wishers to support the young and promising girls’ soccer team which has become their occupation keeping away from idleness and other negative social vices. He revealed that the team is aggressive and can make Isiolo County famous since the girls’ soccer arena is unexplored especially among the pastoralist communities.
Source: Kenya News Agency