The tenure of former president of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Amaju Pinnick has been described as the worst ever for players of the senior national team of Nigeria in terms of their bonuses and their other entitlement.
Pinnick was at the helm as president of the football body in Nigeria for eight years and was only forced out after the team failed to qualify for the World Cup in Qatar. The Delta state born administrator was aiming for a third time in office before the failure to qualify for the World Cup made his dream unrealistic.
He has been succeeded by Ibrahim Musa Gusau but the mess he left behind will still hunt the present board especially in the area of unpaid bonuses. A senior player of the team said they didn’t receive any bonus in the last two years of his reign as president.
” It can’t be that bad again and I am not sure it has ever been that bad. For two years that I was in the team not a single bonus was paid to us. The senior players told us they got their bonus of the 2019 AFCON in 2021. He left without making the payment and now the new board will have to settle us*, he told OGN on the condition of anonymity.
On the amount due to each player he said from his ends and several other players, the former president of the NFF who is now a FIFA executive committee member left them each with around $1000,000 unpaid in bonuses.
” I have not been in the team for a while but for the period of time I was there and my recent interaction from my teammates it is around $100,000 per player. I heard the new president will meet with the captains to clear it up. For now I’m afraid we might never get that money back”, he rounded up saying.
