President of the Nigerian Football Federation Amaju Melvin Pinnick shamelessly declared authoritatively on a National Television station (Arise TV) that “No Nigerian player survives on national team bonuses and allowances as the national team add values to players“.
This indirectly means that Super Eagles players earn more than enough at their respective club sides than to worry about the bonuses and allowances from the national team when they’re not being paid.
For a forward-thinking NFF President, a supposed father figure, and a football administrator at the apex level, that was a statement backed with little or no intelligence and goodwill.
These are players who have played for the country in a bid to make the country proud. And it’s not as if the players begged or lobbied for them to be picked for Super Eagles matches, no.
These players were deemed fit to represent the country and it’s a must that after playing, they’re paid their bonuses and allowances which they’re entitled to. But rather, unfortunately, they’re still being owed for two years which dates back to 2019.
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Pinnick further stated in his interview on Super Eagles
“We’re not proud to say that we’re owing, there are a lot of circumstances in the last two years that made us not to meet some of our obligations”
“Thankfully the player understands that we’re always there for them and since we came on, all the necessities and luxury have been provided”
“When our team is traveling since I came on they go on chattered on all their flights. Any country that we go to, they stay in the best hotel, that I can tell you”
Again, the President of the Federation needs to understand that his submissions are basic.
It’s like when a president of a country begins to glamorize the fact that he’s provided the basic amenities for his citizens. For heaven’s sake that’s why he’s there.
One of the reasons Amaju is the NFF supremo is for the betterment of Nigerian football but if he begins to gloat over basic things like this, it makes one wonder if he’s even prepared to be president.
Other football federations with lesser pedigree than Nigeria can afford to lodge their national team in the best of hotels in any country, fly them with ‘chattered flights’, and not even glory in it because they’re aware that it’s the right thing.
When you want to venture into football, you have to be ready to spend if you need results.
Little did Amaju Pinnick know that his statements in the interview is that he has tried to think the players are cool with how things are going and hence lying to their faces in the media, no.
In the real sense, no player will be motivated to want to play and give his all for the country on the pitch when he’s being owed for years.
The aftermath of Amaju’s interview will be dramatic as it’ll give room for most of these players to pull out of the Super Eagles’ crucial matches later in the year knowing full well that all the President said in that interview were fallacies.
There’s no explanation from Amaju that will justify the owing of Rohr’s salaries for six months and as well owing players’ bonuses for two years even before the global pandemic.
Therefore, it shouldn’t surprise anybody should these players boycott Super Eagles’ all-important World Cup Qualifying matches when it begins later in the year.
DISCLAIMER
Do note that this article is solely the writer’s opinion and does not represent the Super Eagles’ view.
