Rich man’s game ruffles feathers with women rule

It is not often that news on golf finds its way into the current affairs section. But this week, Limuru Golf Club made news for a story that sounded improbable in this day and age.

Until December 2012, Ms Rose Mambo, Ms Martha Vincent and Ms Caroline Wangari were fee-paying members of Limuru Golf Club. They enjoyed the clubs facilities and participated in its annual general meetings.

But at the last such meeting on December 22, one of the members introduced a bylaw they felt was discriminative and unfair.

The new law’s effect was to bar women from seeking elective posts, meaning they were there to be seen, and not heard, despite paying fees and subscriptions like their male counterparts.

What followed is now well known. Dr Ngugi has been suspended for six months and Ms Vincent for one for walking out of the meeting in protest. They have also been locked out of reciprocating clubs such as Thika, Vet Lab and Railways clubs.

The three women hired Mr Phillip Murgor, a former Director of Public Prosecutions who is one of Nairobi’s well known lawyers, and took the matter to the Commissioner of Sports Gordon Oluoch.

“It came as a surprise, of course, because we don’t believe in this day and age, a sports organisation, which is a public organization since they are members of the Kenya Golf Union- can, still has such outdated rules and regulations,” Mr Oluoch said.

Most clubs and organisations have internal ways of resolving disputes but sometimes the grouse spills over and ends up in a government office specifically at the Sports ministry.

Such charged meetings and heated exchanges take place on the top floor of the National Social Security Fund Building and end up in one of the many files on Mr Oluoch’s desk.

He is quick to clarify that he doesn’t want to blame the Limuru Golf Club before he has had a proper look at their rules and only bases his statement on the allegations made by the three women and their lawyer.

Mr Oluoch has handled many sports cases, included in football and at the Kenya Bowling Association (yes, it does exist) where some members felt discriminated on the basis of their race. Some non-Kenyan citizens also wanted to represent the country in international competitions.

If it is about the rules, though, golf clubs have them in plenty.  No jeans and t-shirts without a collar. No baseball caps. Don’t use your mobile phone in the clubhouse outside designated areas. No smoking outside the zones. Be nice to members and staff. No weapons. Definitely no fighting.

Joining a golf club is far from walking into your neighbourhood gym and chatting with the instructors.

For instance, to join Muthaiga Golf Club, one of Kenya’s oldest and most exclusive members’ clubs, you will have to cozy up to two people who have been members there for more than three years each.

These two have to in turn satisfy conditions in the club’s bylaws and to then write a letter of introduction.

A membership proposal is then filled and returned to the general manager together with the applicant’s Curriculum Vitae, two passport size photographs and a copy of their identification card or passport. The proposer then speaks to three members of the membership committee in confidence at least 10 days to the committee meeting.

That is not all for the prospective member then has to fill out an application form and pay a non-refundable Sh15,000 and is then treated as a temporary member.

Some have been able to sidestep the rules of natural justice because they were registered during colonial times and were placed outside the legal mandate of the government.

The Sports Act, which was signed into law on January 15 is expected to reorganise the way sports organisations are run and may offer some relief. For now, the three will have to postpone their tee off until the matter is resolved.