By Victor Kanayo
The Nigeria Basketball Federation (NBBF) has raised alarm over the refusal of South Africa Consulate to grant Nigeria’s U18 Basketball players Visas to participate in the FIBA organised World Cup qualifier.
This was disclosed by officials of NBBF in Abuja.
The official lamented, “Nigeria Basketball Federation has cried out over the refusal of South Africa Consulate in Abuja. to grant visas to Nigeria’s U-18 male basketball team, J’Tigers, who are expected to participate in the qualifying tournament taking place in South Africa to pick Africa’s representatives to the FIBA U-18 World Cup.
“This unholy acts of the South Africa Embassy, is not only embarrassing, it is equally frustrating, and against the global ethos of fair play.
“There were attempts by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to help facilitate the visas, and unfortunately, to no avail.
“The act of refusing the team visas seems like a deliberate effort because the consulate in Lagos, already approved visas for the J’Tigress and they are already in South Africa.”
The Nigerian team are expected to begin their quest for the ticket on Wednesday, September 4, 2024, against Egypt, and subsequently against Angola and Uganda.
