[ad_1]
Namibian Football Association (NFA) president Robert Shimuhili yesterday said it would be “reckless” for the association to give in to the demands of Warriors players who are seeking the return of the entire N$15 million bonus the team received for participating in the Total Energy Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon).
The NFA was involved in a dispute with several senior players, allegedly instigated by some members of the technical team, over prize money which the players claimed was “theirs”.
The Football Association is unhappy with the decision of the disgruntled players to drag controversial activist Michael Amushelelo into the matter.
The Nigerian Football Association received a grant of N$15 million from the Confederation of African Football (CAF) after the team reached the last 16 of the Africa Cup of Nations in Cote d’Ivoire in January.
Shimooshili confirmed that the money had been paid directly to the association and that the NFA was willing to give a portion of the money to the players and technical team for them to share. He said the association would never give in to the players’ demands and give them all the money.
He told the Namibian Sun: “It is reckless for us as the leadership of the NFA, a non-commercial entity, to keep begging the government for help while spending all the money to appease the players.”
“The principle has not changed. If African Stars or Blue Water win the league, will all the prize money go to the players? The Nigeria Football Federation spent about 13 million naira for the team to participate in the Africa Cup of Nations, money we did not have, it was given by the government. How could we forget so quickly? If the government sees us knocking on their door again because we gave all the money to the players, what will they say?”
“Too far from the goal”
Shimooshili further ridiculed those who believe that the players’ demands are based on the contracts they signed with the NFA before the tournament.
One of the clauses in the contract states: “If the team receives any form of sponsorship or reward during the competition, such benefits shall be shared equally between the players and technical staff.”
He argued that the clause did not say that “all” of those revenues had to be donated, adding that CAF money was neither sponsorship nor a reward.
“What we got was a bonus and CAF expects all associations to use the money prudently. CAF never said the money was for players’ salaries. Each association assesses its own situation and spends the money accordingly.”
Sources within the Nigeria Football Federation said the association is willing to offer players and technical members a bonus of between N4 million and N5 million, adding that the figure of N7 million being circulated is “far off”.
The association plans to use part of the funds to renovate the NFA Technical Centre located near the Katutura Football Stadium. Once the renovation is completed, the national team players will train at the facility during the training camp.
Players “absent”
Shimooshili said the NFA executive committee will meet in the coming days and give its opinion on the matter.
“We thank the players for their performance at the Africa Cup of Nations, so they will definitely get a portion of their bonuses. But we are not going to give all the money away recklessly and then start begging tomorrow. It is also good for the players when the NFA is able to meet its obligations, such as international tournaments which cost a lot of money.”
The Nigerian Football Association is said to have excluded other members of the squad from the negotiations and only spoke to the captain, Peter Shalulile.
“During the tournament, PST Bet awarded us N$300,000 which we split equally between the players and technical staff, but now all of a sudden the NFA should benefit from our bonus. We just want our contract to be honoured,” a group of players said in an anonymous statement.
The players believe that the N$124 million development budget allocated by the government to the Sports Ministry, which oversees 55 other sports besides football, should be used for infrastructure development instead of spending their hard-earned money.
[ad_2]
Source link
