Taiwo Adelu
Vice President of Nigeria Football Federation, NFF, Barr. Seyi Akinwunmi has disclosed that football administration in Nigeria is feeling badly the adverse effect of the poor state of the nation’s economy.
Akinwunmi, who is also the Chairman of Lagos State Football Association, LSFA, said that the dwindling fortunes of Nigerian football especially the dire financial state which the game finds itself cannot be isolated from the larger problem which the Nigerian society is facing.
The financial problem has forced the NFF from meeting up with most of its obligations to pay salaries of coaches of all the national teams, allowances of players and staff salaries.
Akinwunmi said that though the problems keep on having their multiplier effects on the operation of the NFF, he hopes that sooner than later all will be well.
“We want to establish new standards and get corporate support,” said Akinwunmi on a SuperSport programme. “But the state of economy is not making it easy. But it will get better.
“There are financial challenges of the moment as a result of new government, with a new Minister and a number of changes in policy at the top.”
He said that the Amaju Pinnick-led Executive Board of the NFF is working very hard with the Minister of Youth and Sports, Solomon Dalung, the relationship, which he said, has been very cordial since the minister assumed duty.
“We are agreed with the Minister of Sports to work very hard to move Nigeria football to new heights,” he said.
He debunked the rumour that all the members of the Technical Committee of the NFF led by Christopher Green resigned enmasse in the wake of the outburst of Chief Coach of the Super Eagles, Sunday Oliseh in the media.
He, however, admitted that “technical committee members truly upset, but did not resign.”
To avoid future occurence where coaches of the national teams would be seen to express their grieviances in the media first before coming to the NFF, Akinwunmi advised that “if national team coaches have issues, they should approach the NFF and bare their minds.”