4th October, 2016
Ginah Ginah, a Chess player and Port Harcourt based businessman, on Tuesday said that the game is good for brain development and mental fitness.
Ginah, an expert in Organisational behaviours in Management, made the assertion in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Port Harcourt.
He said that chess enables players to have the ability to take accurate decisions.
“Playing chess is the best exercise for brain development. Everything you achieve as a human being starts with your brain.
“It gives you the ability to analyse issues and take decisions. Chess players are good decision makers,” he said.
Ginah also described the game as `a mirror of life because of the beginning, middle and end game.
“Just like in life, you may not start well. You may come from a poor background, which is your opening, the middle of the game which is like starting your career.
“You will find out that you still have the opportunities to improve if you put more effort. Finally the end game, how you end up after retirement.
“So, by playing chess, you get used to the vicissitudes of life, how life can change, how your situations can change in life,” he said.
Ginah said playing chess would enable people to go about life at every stage, turn it around and manage it to a successful ending.
“I have benefitted a lot from it in this wise, I am able to make good decisions at my workplace based on my experiences on the chess board,” he said.
Ginah, who recently sponsored an “Independence Anniversary Port Harcourt Club Closed Chess Tournament, said the aim was to keep the game alive and active.
He said that interests in the game could decline without organized tournaments.
“Tournament gives the participants something to look forward to that would measure their performance.
“The tournament is necessary to ginger the players and get more followership. I am quite impressed with the turnout considering the fact that there has been no competition for years,” he said.
Ginah called on government to include chess in sport curriculum and urged parents to encourage their wards in secondary schools to play the game.