Former Nigeria Football Federation officials have challenged Shehu Dikko’s comparison of government funding under the Amaju Pinnick and Ibrahim Gusau administrations, arguing that much of the larger allocation received by Gusau’s board was consumed by inherited debts.
Key takeaways
- The Pinnick administration received about N15bn over eight years, while Gusau’s board was given a one-off N17bn intervention.
- More than $1m was reportedly spent clearing José Peseiro’s unpaid wages, which had accumulated over 23 months.
- Super Eagles players were also owed bonuses and allowances dating back to the 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign.
- Officials said inflation and the naira’s depreciation meant the earlier N15bn had considerably greater dollar value.
- Sports stakeholders praised President Bola Tinubu for increasing support for national teams and sports administration.
Funding figures disputed
Dikko recently said during a television interview that the Federal Government provided approximately N15bn to the NFF throughout Pinnick’s eight-year period in charge. By contrast, the Gusau-led federation received a single intervention payment of N17bn. Dikko cited the difference while calling for stronger financial controls.
The former officials did not challenge those figures, but said the comparison failed to account for how the newer allocation was used. They stated that a substantial share of the N17bn went towards obligations carried over from the previous administration.
Among those commitments was the settlement of former head coach José Peseiro’s outstanding salary. The board also paid overdue match bonuses and allowances owed to Super Eagles players from the qualifiers for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
A person close to the former NFF president said the N17bn was significant, but stressed that Gusau’s team had inherited extensive liabilities. Peseiro had been owed 23 months of wages at a monthly rate of $70,000, with the unpaid amount alone exceeding $1m.
The same individual said the previous administration had claimed that Aiteo was funding Peseiro’s salary, but maintained that this had not happened. In that account, it was the Gusau board that eventually resolved the outstanding payment dispute.
The inherited burden, the former official added, extended beyond the coaching contract. Match payments and performance bonuses owed to Super Eagles players from the 2018 World Cup qualifying series were also still unresolved.
Questions over responsibility and spending power
Stakeholders aligned with Gusau also pointed out that Dikko had been the NFF’s second vice-president during Pinnick’s tenure. They argued that this position made it difficult for him to completely separate himself from financial decisions taken by the earlier leadership.
They further insisted that a larger government allocation does not, on its own, demonstrate financial wrongdoing. In their view, the crucial issue is the destination of the money rather than the headline figure.
One of the officials said the clarification was important because receiving more public funding than an earlier administration was not automatically evidence of improper conduct. He maintained that the Gusau board used the greater part of its N17bn intervention to settle liabilities inherited from the Pinnick era.
Former officials also drew attention to the sharp fall in the naira’s value. During Pinnick’s tenure, the dollar exchanged at between N200 and N600, meaning the N15bn allocated during that period carried substantially more purchasing power. When Gusau’s N17bn was released, the exchange rate had climbed to about N1,500 per dollar, greatly diminishing its real value.
Although the dispute over old liabilities remains, sports stakeholders commended President Bola Tinubu for increasing financial backing for Nigeria’s national teams and helping to bring greater stability to sports administration.
